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The way I do it is scale the fish first, then remove the fillets leaving the skin on and give them a wash. Leaving the skin on gives you something to hang onto till it's eaten, and it doesn't come apart in the smoker I take the ribs out, but leave the y-bones in. Then put them in a brine made of a gallon of water, a cup of salt and a cup of sugar (you can use pickling salt or table salt, it's not written in stone, but I like to use brown or yellow sugar...all a matter of taste). I'm assuming you've got a few or 1 big one to make it worthwhile. Let them brine overnight or all day (once again it's a personal pref.)but a few times you should 'push' the brine..give it a stir to make sure the brine has access to all parts of the fish. When it's brined wipe the excess slop off the top of the fillets with a clean cloth (it won't be clean for long, but don't worry) and lay them out on racks to dry. By this, I mean let them sit in a cool area with good air circulation and no flies until there's a glossy coating on the fish. This is called the pellicle, and it's pretty important. It takes a few hours usually for this to happen, and what that does is prevent the salt and sugar from leeching out of the fish, so it retains the tastes you've been putting into it and keeps it from getting too dry. How long you smoke it for depends on what kind of smoker you've got, but remember that it's more a drying process than a cooking one, and the flavour of the wood needs time to get into the fish. 8-10 hours of cool smoking in one of those little square electric ones is what I used to do, but my new one takes a little less time. You'll probably add more chips after the first ones are used up, but it doesn't just get smoke all the time; about 1/2 or more of the time it just gets the heat. You just keep an eye on it and test a little...it's fun. When it starts to look really good it probably is getting close. I like to use apple wood for fish or if you're in the country try chokecherry and just a little red willow , and hickory or maple for birds, venison and sausage, but there again you'll have to see what you like best. Soak your wood chips beforehand so they smoke more and longer, and watch out for the fish on the bottom racks so they don't get burnt because sooner or later those chips dry out .Keep the spritser bottle from the barbecue handy! You can experiment and put different things in the brine (honey, chillies, etc). Some guys like to sprinkle spices on top of the fish before smoking, but I never saw the need. When it's done, just break the fillet open and lift out the rows of y-bones as you eat them. That's pretty easy for pike, but a little harder for whitefish, which seem to carry a spare set of bones, just in case. If you're in a cold climate (it's -33C here this morning) you may have to put some kind of drop sheet or old coats over the smoker to make it warm enough). Let us know how it works out, and bon appetit! Thanks buzz. I just got into smoking meats this year. I'm definitely trying this one