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How are Lox made?

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    How are Lox made?

    I have a question for those much smarter than me.....How are Lox made? Love the stuff but it's expensive. Can you make it at home? Most of the stuff I buy says smoked, but I assume cold smoked and I know how meathead feels about that, so that doesn't excite me.

    I have a gravlax recipe from cooks illustrated that works pretty well but does not seem to be the same.

    Thanks in advance.

    #2

    My take on gravlax

    Comment


    • pjlstrat
      pjlstrat commented
      Editing a comment
      Sorry one more question...Have you ever smoked it after the cure? If so, what temp and what wood.

    • Elton's BBQ
      Elton's BBQ commented
      Editing a comment
      pjlstrat
      Question 1 I actually did a quick rinse just to get salt/sugar of it.
      Question 2 I havent smoked salmon after doing the "gravlax process" but i have other ways to cure the salmon before coldsmoking. When i coldsmoke salmon i use sawdust of beechwood in the weber coldsmokegenerator or i've used beechwood pellets with the amazentube coldsmoker.
      Last edited by Elton's BBQ; July 2, 2019, 09:52 AM.

    • pjlstrat
      pjlstrat commented
      Editing a comment
      Thank you.

    #3
    First you find a good loxsmith....

    Comment


    • HouseHomey
      HouseHomey commented
      Editing a comment
      I see what you did there.

    • FireMan
      FireMan commented
      Editing a comment
      A man after my own heart.

    • Elton's BBQ
      Elton's BBQ commented
      Editing a comment
      Haha.. bullseye

    #4
    Just add smoke. Make sure you get it good and dry to devolp that pellicle.
    Last edited by HouseHomey; July 2, 2019, 06:41 AM.

    Comment


    • pjlstrat
      pjlstrat commented
      Editing a comment
      Wow you threw me there. Had to look up pellicle. What temp and what wood?

    • HouseHomey
      HouseHomey commented
      Editing a comment
      That would be up to you. Cold smoke? Low n slow? Fruit wood or something light.

      You can also use a smoking gun. I’ll post mine below

    #5
    Here’s what I use at home and at work. Some others too that look like a pipe.

    Click image for larger version

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    Comment


    • Troutman
      Troutman commented
      Editing a comment
      I know what you really put into that pipe Homey

    • HouseHomey
      HouseHomey commented
      Editing a comment
      35 years ago, sure!

    #6
    I've made, and eaten, and gifted, loads of cold smoked salmon over the years and have yet to make myself or anyone else sick. Having said that, you really need to watch the ambient temperature when cold smoking salmon. If the ambient temperature is above about 21 C (70 F) then I won't attempt it. Steven Raichlen's method is the one I usually use.

    Cold Smoked Salmon Recipe: Salmon is cured in salt and brown sugar and cold-smoked at temperatures below 100 degrees.


    Keep in mind that neither lox nor gravlax are smoked.

    Because you're not really a deli pro unless you can pick out your lox and nova from your gravlax.

    Comment


    • Troutman
      Troutman commented
      Editing a comment
      Nice Bon Appetit article. Love me some Lox.

    • pjlstrat
      pjlstrat commented
      Editing a comment
      Thank you @pkadare!! much appreciated.

    #7
    I don't want to start a controversy about the differences between lox, gravalax and smoked salmon, but to me lox is salmon that has been brined and then cold smoked. Here's my source for all you goyim pitmasters: https://www.myjewishlearning.com/rec...-your-own-lox/

    I went on a salmon fishing adventure in Alaska several years and we had our fish processed by Ed Kasilof's. These guys made some pretty awesome lox and have a recipe with instructions posted on their website. The link has been giving me fits so I'll summarize here: Pieces of salmon cut in 2x4 inch chunks. They recommend a refrigerated wet brine where the salmon is totally submersed in a brine solution of 2 parts salt to 1 part brown sugar. Brine under refrigeration for 12 to 24 hours, depending on the thickness of your salmon pieces. The 2x4 cuts should go for 12 hours. Larger fillets from, say, a king salmon, can be injected with a hypo needle and some solution and/or pierce the skins in places with knife. I've seen some places that recommend a dry brine, so YMMV. They follow the refrigerated brine with an airing out period where they let the pieces, again under refrigeration, "cure" on racks for 12-16 hours. Air circulation is critical. They then cold smoke the meat at a temperature of 80 degrees or less. They recommend a lot of air circulation during the cold smoke, and their smoking process takes 12 to 16 hours. A lot of guys up north use an old cooler or refrigerator with a fan inside and run smoke in using a smoke generator like this: https://smokedaddyinc.com/product-ca.../cold-smokers/

    Here's a link to the instructions:

    Cold smoking is very hard to do at home because you need to have a smoker capable of keeping the temperature to 80 F or less. One way to do this is to have your heat source (smoke generator) far enough away that the smoke cools before it reaches your smoker. Begin with either fresh […]


    A lot of DIY home recipes omit the cold smoking process, but I think it's essential if you want some real, authentic lox. Especially if you are playing with some fresh silver salmon.

    Full disclosure, I never followed my own advice and made lox with my salmon after I got home, but did have some Kasilof lox and it seemed on par with what you'd find in any good deli.

    Now that I've posted this, though, I think I'm going to go home and try it myself. Now if only I could find a decent bagel in south Louisiana!

    Comment


    • HouseHomey
      HouseHomey commented
      Editing a comment
      Dated a Jewish first for 6 years and found a Bialy (spelling?) apparently I am the last one to know. I am never looking back. I don’t eat much bread these days but I can still taste it, especially fresh? Oh my.

    • pjlstrat
      pjlstrat commented
      Editing a comment
      Beefchop Thank you for some great information!!!

    #8
    I've done this a few times . I use the Amaz-n-smoker pellet smoker for generating smoke and I empty my BGE and just put that in the fire box. However, this is a cool/cold weather thing as you do not want that pit temp going above 90.

    Comment


    • pjlstrat
      pjlstrat commented
      Editing a comment
      Great info.....If I try this I will do it in the winter here in new england...on a nice 30deg day

    • CaliforniaDad
      CaliforniaDad commented
      Editing a comment
      I'm toying with trying something similar in my Recteq (leaving the smoker itself off) with the Amaz-n supplying the smoke. What's the warmest outdoor temp you'd do this at?

    #9
    Lox is brined and unsmoked.
    Gravlox is also made with a different style of brine and is unsmoked.
    Nova is brine cured and cold smoked.

    As time has changed, most folks tend to use the terminology as if they were interchangeable.

    Comment


    • HouseHomey
      HouseHomey commented
      Editing a comment
      Yup, for sure. That’s because most of us never knew to start with.

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