Winter Salt / Northern thread

What about unheated attached garages in the basement?

Has to depend on the temperature, more than anything. How much heat escapes from the house, how far down is the basement, and how deep do they bury pipes in your neck of the woods? They bury them nine feet deep in Silverton, but my unheated basement stays about fifty-five year 'round. I would put a dog dish full of water in the garage, and see if it freezes solid and stays that way. If it doesn't, these folks are saying don't keep a car in there.

Earle

or BBQ!

-jenn

Mmmm. Had some fresh Atlantic salmon yesterday that I marinated in oil and lemon juice with dill then put it on a cedar plank and BBQ'ed it with maple hardwood charcoal. Had a caper/dill/garlic sauce for topping it. Ohh was it good....

Mike

86/00 CJ7 Laredo, 33x9.5 BFG Muds, 'glass nose to tail >

THAT'S freakin' funny.

YUM! Only thing that would make that better would be fresh Copper River Salmon.

-jenn

I like the salmon from both coasts. They are different, yet the same... Fresh wild is so much sweeter than frozen or farm salmon though we eat then too. We get farm salmon frozen in a bag for less than $3.00 each usually. Enough for 3 people. Cedar planking even a farm salmon tastes wicked.

Mike

jbjeep wrote:

Mike, now that we've gone really OT can you advise me on the cedar planking.

My GF loves salmon and I like it too. I have heard that cedar slabs on the BBQ makes salmon really great. I can get western cedar at the local furniture factory or eastern cedar in my back yard (chainsaw required).

Merrill

Mike Roma> I like the salmon from both coasts. They are different, yet the

I can not comment on Mike's home-cooking skills but on the trail he is the man!

That one sounds good, I have posted the recipe in another post on the plank to answer both in one.

Mike

RoyJ wrote:

You sure got that right!

-jenn

I have been known to take salmon and even smoked eel for 'unagi' or sushi eel on Jeep runs. I usually wrap the salmon in foil for open fire coal cooking. I like a bit of lemon and dill in it when cooking, but sometimes stuff them with cooked rice and mushrooms or something like 'Uncle Ben's' wild rice mix.

I believe in eating well when out camping. My wife and son agree.

The local grocery stores actually sell red cedar planks in the fish departments. It's an original Native Canadian recipe I believe, Western North American anyway.. The planks are a basic 1"x8" chunk of cedar cut a foot long. Finished they measure 7.5" x 3/4" x 12". A nice cedar shake would work, but would only likely last a couple BBQ's before it burned through. The plank I am using now has about 6 BBQ's on it. It still has one or two left I think. The smoke from the smoldering cedar makes the flavor. It will be bland if the fire is too cold to start the burn.

You soak the plank for a few hours by weighing it down in a full sink of water, then you shake it off and oil it. Add the salmon and put it on the BBQ at a temperature that is going to start the plank charring. Close it up and cook for about 20-30 minutes per fish inch thickness. I start checking for flakiness at 20 minutes and go from there.

I like to oil the salmon and marinate it in oil, lemon, black pepper, dill and a bit of garlic usually. I think the oil seals the juices in.

I have a couple mackerel sitting in the freezer I want to plank next BBQ.

The sauce I made the other day was a type of tartar sauce.

1 cup mayo. I used half mayo and half miracle whip just because I had them both.

1 teaspoon dried mustard.

1 hard-boiled egg, diced fine.

1 garlic clove, crushed and diced fine.

1 scant tablespoon dried dill weed or more of fresh chopped if I can get.

1 tablespoon diced capers.

1 teaspoon whole capers.

pinch of black pepper, fresh cracked or milled is best.

a splash of lemon juice, about a tablespoon or less depending on your taste.

Mix and chill for a while to let the flavors mix.

I make another variation using more lemon, 2 tablespoons, garlic and sweet green relish instead of capers and dill. It is a winner around here too. I don't always even use the garlic, just make the sweet and sour one.

Mike

merrill wrote:

If you have a smoker, smoke the habaneros first. Works great on beef or pork but also adds just a bit of flavor to salmon, particularly if you like to blacken the salmon slightly in wagnerware before you cook it.

I'm getting fond of Thai chili pepper, a dash of balsamic mixed with kaffir juice, soak the salmon slightly then blacken both sides in an old wagner skillet, then either grill or bake the salmon. The kaffir juice also works well as a replacement for lemon or lime juice when eating the salmon.

Any of you folks still see the old dried out variety of kippered smoked salmon? Used to find it in the local grocery stores around Kalispell Mt all the time, but nobody here in the SF Bay area seems to carry anything but the gooey wet smoked salmon any more except FishMarket and even theirs is pretty moist. The old dried stuff was pretty dry, no liquid content to speak of, about half way on the way to becoming jerky. May have been regional I guess.

Mike Romain proclaimed:

I just saw some of that kippered salmon. I was at a local Russian deli getting some sauerkraut and noticed some strips of it. It looked dry and chewy for sure. They had salmon bellies done that way too. They have about every 'european' smoked fish known there.

We used to get it often out west.

Mike

L>

Heh, my kid just said the oriental store across the street sells Salmon Jerky too.

Mike

Mike Roma>

Thanks Mike

I'll try to get some cedar planks today or early this week.

I have lots of garlic from the garden, also lots of dried hot peppers from the garden so maybe I can get creative.

Merrill

Mike Roma> I have been known to take salmon and even smoked eel for 'unagi' or