Smoked salmon brine is the key to perfectly moist, tender smoked fish. This recipe and video explain how to make and use salmon brine!

Looking for instructions on how to smoke salmon? You’ll find them in my post on how to smoke salmon. This post explains how to make the brine for smoked salmon.

On occasions like Christmas brunch or a New Year’s Eve party, nothing is quite as delicious as smoked salmon. The fish is fantastic with bagels and cream cheese, on a salad, or served as an appetizer with pumpernickel bread, quick pickled red onions, and crackers.

The problem is, smoked salmon is expensive to buy. The solution is to make it yourself and it isn’t difficult at all. It’s a mystery to me why there are so many people smoking without brining salmon first.

Sure, the brining process takes several hours, but skipping this step leads to the fish being dry and lacking flavor. Nobody enjoys that, so let me show you how simple it is to make and use a brine for smoking fish.

Some people refer to the process as curing, and the solution as a cure. Whatever you call it, this one imparts a lot of good flavor and helps in the preserving process.

Smoked salmon brine FAQ

Ingredient notes and substitutions

The typical fish brine has three elements – sugar, salt and water, and most recipes call for equal parts of sugar and salt.

I use a slightly different ratio; a quarter cup salt to one third cup sugar and four cups of liquid. The liquid can be just water, but for flavor, I include some soy sauce and dry white wine. Feel free to use low sodium soy sauce or adjust to less per your taste.

Video: making and using salmon brine

The brine is simple to make, and the actual process of brining the fish is really more about hands-off time than anything else.

To see the process from start to finish, watch the video in the recipe card at the bottom of this post.

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Instructions

For this recipe, mix together the sugar, salt, soy sauce, water, wine, onion and garlic powders, pepper and Tabasco sauce in a bowl with a whisk to incorporate and thoroughly dissolve the sugar and salt.

After making the brine, it will be ready to use immediately. Otherwise, transfer it to a covered container and store it in a refrigerator for up to 5 days.

How to use smoked salmon brine

1. Pour some of the brine in the bottom of 13×9-inch pan.

2. Place the salmon filets in the pan and pour the remaining brine over the salmon to cover. Ensure that the fish is fully submerged in the brine.

3. All that’s left at that point is to brine the fish for 8 hours and it will be ready to put on the smoker. After brining, you may refrigerate the brined salmon for up to two days before smoking, or you can immediately begin the process of making smoked salmon. The first step is drying it to create a pellicle.

What is a pellicle?

A pellicle seals moisture inside of the fish and creates a sticky surface for the smoke to adhere to.

To create a pellicle, place the brined salmon in front of a fan to dry and develop a shiny skin. This process takes about 4 hours, and it is vital to do so. Another option is to leave the fish uncovered on a baking sheet in the refrigerator. The cold, circulating air works great.

For instructions on smoking the fish, click here to see my recipe for smoked salmon.

This post, first published on Kevin Is Cooking Jan 5, 2014, was last updated with new content on Oct. 12, 2021.