Smoke and Grill

Yesterday I helped a friend cook some fresh Salmon by smoking.  That is not the same as creating "Smoked Salmon" which is a process to preserve as much as cooking.  Yesterday we wanted to cook the Salmon using Alder Wood in a way that kept it moist and added the flavor of the wood. Here is how we did it.

Prepare the salmon - She had purchased the fish with the skin on. That is great for this - just make sure that the fish has been de-scaled. If not you must do that.  Next rinse the fish under cold water to remove any scale and surface bacteria.  Pat the fish dry.  Oil the basket or the grill where the fish will cook.  Then put he fish skin side down and rub with some EVOO.  Lightly sprinkle with seasoning.  We used DAVIS DUST which was Fantastic!! 

My grill has a smoker box built in.  So after soaking the Alder Chip overnight I filled it about 1/3 full and turned on the that burner - which is very small - to high.  I put the basket with the fish in the middle of grill on the grates. The smoker is on the left of the grill.  I also made a smoke bomb using aluminum foil and put it on top of the far right burner which I put on the lowest setting.  Using this method you can  control the heat so the fish cooks slowly and absorbs the wood smoke flavor without being over direct heat.  The 2 pounds of fillets took about 35 minutes.  I kept the temperature right around 250 - 275.

We had a wonderful lunch of Alder Smoked Salmon with some cold salads.

Curried Chicken and Rice

This is a go to dish when I am in a hurry and have left over chicken. It is easy and tastes great.


1 cup of uncooked rice
4 oz of cooked chicken  diced (You can also use canned chicken)
1 teaspoon chicken base - I use Better than Bullion - use what you have
2 oz diced onion
1 stock of celery diced
1/2 teaspoon curry - (I use Williams Sonoma Madras Curry)
2 cups of water

Combine all ingredients in a saucepan with a lid.  Bring to a boil and then reduce heat to simmer. Cover and simmer for 18 -20 minutes until the rice is cooked. Serves two.  Increase recipe as needed for more.

Serve with a salad or steamed veggies. 

Salad Dressings

Summer means lots of salads with fresh produce. Here are some dressing ideas I use.

Spicy Ranch ( There is a ready to use version made by Hidden Valley that is very good.)

Add some of you favorite Salsa to the Ranch Dressing

Vinaigrette
I always add finely chopped Shallots to my vinaigrette. I find that adds a great flavor

1000 Island

1 cup of good mayonnaise
1/4 cup of chili sauce or ketchup
1 diced shallot
1/3 cup of sweet pickle relish
2 hard boiled eggs chopped
1 stock of celery diced

Combine all of the above and mix well.  Chill for at least 1 hour so the flavors will marry. 

Don't forget just plain Mayonnaise. It can be a very good dressing for chopped salads or even Tuna Salad.