Hot smoked trout

Ingredients for 10 servings:

• 2 cloves garlic
• 1 tbsp peppercorns, crushed
• 1 tbsp juniper berries, crushed
• 1 tbsp mustard seeds, crushed
• 3 bay leaves
• e.g. rosemary, shredded
• e.g. basil, shredded
• e.g. oregano, shredded
• 3 onions
• 250 g salt
• 10 trout
• n. B. water

Instructions

Working time approx. 40 minutes; Rest time approx. 12 hours; Total time approx. 12 hours 40 minutes

To make the smoking brine, boil the following spices in a pot with 2 liters of water for about 10 minutes: 2 crushed garlic cloves, 1 tablespoon of crushed peppercorns, 1 tablespoon of crushed juniper berries, 1 tablespoon of crushed mustard seeds, 3 bay leaves, 1 spoon each (tablespoon or teaspoon to taste) of rosemary, basil, and oregano, for those who prefer a more Mediterranean flavor. Fill a clean paint mixing bucket with a lid (cheap at hardware stores) with some water (2 liters) and dissolve about half a packet of salt in it. Add 3 roughly chopped onions. Add the boiled, cooled brine and the gutted trout (I always use 10 trout, which is enough to fill my oven) to the salted water. Make sure the gills are removed from the trout, as they could lead to a bitter taste. Add enough water until all the fish are “swimming.” To prevent the trout from floating, I lower a plate onto the fish. Then put the lid on and refrigerate overnight. The next day, the trout are smoked by stringing them onto smoking hooks and hanging them to drain. They are then hung in a smoker preheated to 40°C to dry. The oven is heated with charcoal and/or beechwood. The fish are dry when they no longer have any sticky spots (finger test). After drying, the cooking phase begins. To do this, the temperature is slowly increased to 70-80°C. If the temperature is increased too quickly, the fish could tear and fall off the hook! Keep the temperature constant during cooking, only briefly increasing it to over 100°C twice. The cooking process takes about 30 to 40 minutes. When the dorsal fin can be easily peeled off and the meat is white, smoking can begin. Close the air dampers and reduce the temperature to about 50°C. To create smoke, add beechwood kindling or ready-made beech shavings (available from a fishing shop) to the embers. The whole process takes 45 minutes to 1.5 hours, depending on how you like your fish: golden yellow or golden brown. While smoking, enjoy a cool, fresh beer, and serve the finished trout with boiled potatoes and lettuce, or even just toast and horseradish. By the time the smoking process begins, our neighbors will be standing by the fence with cutlery and plates. That’s why I always make 10 pieces, so no one can complain about the smoke. If you don’t have a smoker, you can also prepare the trout in a smoker.