Cold Smoked Halibut

I wanted to branch out from smoked salmon this year and having enjoyed the produce from Gigha Halibut I thought I would have a try at smoking some halibut of my own. My first attempt didn't go well. I left it in the brine for 24 hours as I would for salmon. The result was just about edible but way to dry and salty. Halibut, I had just learned, is a much more delicate fish than salmon. The second attempt was delicious though:


1 - 1.5Kg Halibut fillet, skin on
Demerara Sugar
Zest of 2 Lemons
Salt


The volume of salt isn't really important but the proportion of salt to sugar should be about 4:1. Place the salt, sugar and lemon zest together in a non-reactive container (plastic, ceramic or even wood).

Mix together then place the halibut filet in the container. Scoop the salt mixture over it so that it is completely covered. Leave for 4 hours. 

Rinse of the brine with cold water. Pat dry with paper towels and leave to hang in a cool, dry place for 24 hours. Cold smoke for 4-6 hours and that's all there is to it.

Smoking Cheese

A quick experiment in smoking cheese to find out what works and what doesn't. 

From the top left, there's a slice of Emmental, a whole Camembert, a block of mild Cheddar, a slice of Brie (manufactured as a slice so that the sides are covered in rind), a log of fresh Mozzarella and a small round of soft goat's cheese.

Into the smoker (an old packing case):

I used oak, but any of the usual hardwoods would have been fine. I turned the cheeses over after three hours to get a more even finish. I took them out after six hours:

Leave to rest for a day or two in a cool place. 

My favourite was the Emmental. It's delicious on its own, but gets even better if grated and cooked in an omelette. Likewise the Cheddar. The Mozzarella also worked well, bringing its delicious smokiness to salads. The cheeses with rinds were a little less compelling, but still not at all bad. I haven't tried to do anything with them but eat them neat. If nothing else they add an unexpected twist to a cheeseboard.

Cold Smoked Cherry Tomatoes

I first came across these in Borough Market and fell in love with them. Now that I'm a long way from London, I make my own and they taste just as good to me. I suppose you could add them to salads, but I just eat them straight from the jar.

Some people use olive oil to store them, but I find it's too powerful a taste. It overwhelms the delicate smokiness of the tomatoes. I much prefer a fairly neutral tasting oil and so I've used rapeseed oil here, but go with what you like best. Likewise you can vary the spices to pretty much anything you like, or omit them altogether.

The Recipe:

Cherry Tomatoes - Lots (as many as will fit in your smoker)
Sea Salt
Sugar
Dried Oregano
Chilli Flakes
Rapeseed Oil

1. Cut each tomato in half and lay them on a baking tray.

2. Sprinkle with sea salt and, if the tomatoes are not especially sweet,  a little sugar

3. Dry them in the oven for about 4 hours at 100℃. They are ready when they are semi-dried, rather than being hard and fully dried. The time will depend on the size of the tomatoes, but they should look something like this:

4. Put them in your smoker and cold smoke for at least another 4 hours until they have developed a delicious smoky taste. I used oak, but any of the hardwoods wood have done fine: Cherry, Beech, Hickory, Apple, Maple .....

5. Put the tomatoes in a jar, sprinkling in a little dried oregano and some chilli flakes as you go. Top up the jar with the rapeseed oil and you are done. 

I've no idea how long they keep as its rarely more than 24 hours before the jar is empty in this household.