House-Smoked Whitefish

There was no such thing as going over to my grandmother’s house and not eating. She would start with, “Are you hungry?” like you had a choice, but you didn’t. You might say, “No thanks, I just had lunch.” But then she’d say, “How about a sandwich?” You’d say, “Thanks, but I’m not hungry.” She’d say, “I’ve got some salami.” More declining, more offers. “I can warm up some soup.” “Some leftover brisket?” “A piece of fruit?” At some point, you relented simply because it was easier than resisting.

Even as a kid, though, she could always get me with whitefish, which I would eat with toast, crackers, latkes or by itself. This recipe tastes just like I remember it.

Serves 3 to 4

4 cups water
1/2 cup kosher salt
1/4 cup brown sugar
3 tablespoons lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon ground allspice
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
12 ounces sturgeon or other moist, large-flake white fish, 3/4- to 1-inch thick

Special equipment: stovetop smoker and oak or alder smoking chips (see note below)

In a non-metallic measuring cup or mixing bowl, combine the water, salt, sugar, lemon juice, allspice and pepper, whisking until the salt and sugar dissolve. Place the fish in a shallow container and pour in enough saltwater mixture to cover. Place something on top of the fish to keep it submerged, cover the entire set up, and refrigerate it for 45 minutes (55 minutes if the skin is left on the fish).

Remove the fish from the brine and place it on a lightly oiled rack (the rack from the smoker is fine). Place the rack on a sheet pan or cookie sheet and set it aside in a cool, ideally breezy, place for 1 hour. (If you like, you can place an electric fan on low near the fish to deter flying insects.) This will form a thin glaze on the fish called the pellicle, which gives the fish better color, flavor and texture.

Cook the fish, following your smoker’s manufacturer’s instructions, with the wood chips for about 12 minutes, until it’s cooked through.

Note
You can also use a grill to smoke your fish. Light a small fire on one side of the grill. Scatter some smoking chips over the fire or place a smoker box with chips over the fire. Place the fish on the grill so that it’s not over the fire, and then adjust any vents so that the smoke is drawn diagonally across the fish and out the top.