Anyone ever smoke tuna?

[pontoonbandit]

Thought this might be a question for this board. I'm smoking some salmon tommorrow for the big game on Sunday and wondered if any of you guys have ever smoked tuna. I brought back some tuna from cabo from this summer and my wife and I thawed some out this week a cooked it up on the grill, it was awesome! We had some left over that I didn't want to refreeze so I thought I would experiment and smoke a bit of it. Have any of you guys done this before? Any advice

[Weather or Knot]

I smoked alot of my tuna from last year and then vaccum packed it. I love the stuff and aparentlly my wife does to! When I go hunting or fishing I will take a package with me and the only way that it lasts very long is if I dont open it! The way I smoke it is I let it sit in a brine overnight(1/4 cup soy sauce,1/4 cup warcheshire,1/2 cup white sugar,1/2 brown sugar, 1/4 cup salt, and 1 1/2 quarts of water. I have friends that swear by teriaki ) then rinse it thoughly in the morning. Lay the pieces out flat and dab them with a towel to get any excess water off. I like pepper so I pepper the heck out of it once I put it on the racks. I bought a LP gas moker last summer and love it. It only takes about 3 hours on a lower setting to smoke it all the way through. I also prefer hickory for smoke. Smoked tuna is great and you wont be disappointed! Hope this helps

[pontoonbandit]

Thanks Weather or Knot, I think I just wanted some reassurance. I've got it in the brine right now. I also prefer hickory. I'll let everyone know how it turns out.

[pearl]

Lay the pieces out flat

How thick are you cutting the pieces or do you brine as a whole loin?

As luck would have it I just got back in town with 70lbs of yellow fin loins last night.
You also mention you smoke for 3 hrs on low. Any idea what temp low is?

Sounds like a great super bowl treat. Thanks for the tips.

[PapaHog]

I tried twice and failed two times to turn out a product that could be eaten.

If you succeed post your results. I would like to know how it turned out.

Thank You

[Weather or Knot]

I forgot to tell tell you tht when I can my tuna I always do some that I run about an hours worth of smoke through! cant beat that smoke flavor!

[Weather or Knot]

I cut the pieces about 1"-1 1/4" thick. About the same thickness as I would cut my steaks! The low temp is about 180-200 F. You can bring it up to 350 for a short time at the end to kill any bacteria just be carefull not to over cook it! IT COOKS QUICK!

[Hanapa'a Time]

For canning, cold smoke(smoke only no heat, except what the burning bisquet puts out) for about 1/2 hour to an hour then can those chunks. Mix one 1/2 pint regular and 1/2 pint smoked for awesome sandwiches

I also did some chunks(not canned) that were okay, great flavor, just cooked too long and too thin. Not tough, just dry. I am goin' to try again this season, thicker pieces and don't over cook.

[Woody]

I smoke a lot of my albacore during the summer. My recipe is as simple as can be. I use a dry brine; 2 parts dark brown sugar and 1 part kosher or sea salt. Cut the tuna loin into 3/4-1 inch steaks. Layer the brine and fish in a large plastic tub with a lid or those 2 1/2 gallon ziplock bags work great. Park it in the fridge for 3-4 hours. It will make it's own liquid brine. Much more than that and it gets too salty. Remove from the brine, rinse and place on a rack to dry. This is the most important step, in my opinion. The fish needs to sit long enough to be completly dry to the touch. You can use a fan to speed things up. Smoke with alder for 3-4 hours. In my Big Chief I used 2 pans. In my new Smokey Mountain, I use one pan. It works out to about 1 to 1 1/2 hours of smoke.

Tuna is really easy to over cook. Air on the side of caution and pull it out before you think it ready. A little rare in the middle won't hurt a thing.

[pontoonbandit]

Woody, that's the brine I used so I hope it turns out. Thanks for your input, I'll put it too good use tommorrow.

[flapbreaker]

If you find that it comes out a bit strong you might buy some of that wasabi mayonaise they sell at fred meyers for dipping. It kind of mellows out any strong soy flavor.

[Arima17Ryan]

I try to buy a couple of tuna every year off the docks(I know, tuna newbie here) and always smoke a batch. I smoke my tuna in whole loins. I use a brine similar to my salmon brine, but with less salt and more sugar. The whole loins don't seem to dry out as bad as thin pieces. Then I vacuum seal and freeze them for future use. We love smoked tuna in pasta or tuna casserole. Yum yum!

[Pilar]

The fish does not need much help it has awesome flavor.

IMHO simple is best and my friend Puffin knows simple.

Part a loin into lengthwise slabs about an inch thick. I do this by separating the outer 1 inch layer near the skin from the loin. This is the fatty part of the loin and the layer is easily seen. Just help it off with the knife. The piece left is a different, darker color. Split it lengthwise with the knife to make two long flat filets.

Now use a glass or plastic container. The veggie drawer in the fridge is perfect, do not use metal of any kind. Pack the filets in ordinary rock salt for exactly 1/2 hour. You can go for less time but not more. Most like 20 minutes but I like mine a little salty. Use only the coarse salt or it will be too salty.

Rinse all the salt off and drip dry. Rack and smoke for about 6 hours in a big chief smoker (Luhr Jensen). Don't use the bottom rack it is too hot. Use alder chips and burn 3 pans as fast as they go. Flip the slabs at 3 hours and trade top and bottom racks then too.

Try it then. I like mine pretty soft and you can go longer to get dryer. If you are storing it then leave it soft as it dries out over time.

You will love this and it works with any fish. Puffin knows fish and I learned it from him.

[O Tshawytcha]

I tried it but I did not Inhale it... oh wait I guess I did eat it pretty fast.

[tailchaser]

I have a method that seems to work well, at least it looks that way when relatives fight over the last pieces .......Similar to Pilar's method with a twist. Cut the loin lengthwise into two equal pieces and soak in rock salt for 1/2 hour. Wipe off and put on a cookie sheet. Dribble soy sauce (it will soak in very quick so don't use too much), and apply some Montreal Steak Seasonings. Throw in the smoker until it flakes, ( I smoke it at 175 approx.) and just keep an eye on it. Usually takes about 4 hours and you're done. Very very tasty.

tc

[Chum Bucket]

I hot smoke the whole loin until it's about 1/3 cooked and then can it!!! I use the same dry brine as my salmon. I add garlic and white pepper. It really makes a mess of the smoker and takes some time, but I enjoy the smoked version better than plain.

[Mark Mc]

The two most important thing to stress:

1.Tuna soaks up a brine very quickly! So if you leave salmon in a given brine for, say 4 hours (and you like how it comes out), then soak the tuna for no more than 2 hours....or even a bit less.

2. Tuna cooks very quickly, and then dries out (when over cooked). So keep the heat low (or put the tuna on the upper rack farthest from the heat).

[fishindude]

Is it necessary to brine the tuna if you only plan to smoke for an hour then can. Doesn't the brine cure the meat to prevent spoilage? Canning would do the same thing. Just curious if I could get away with a half hour to hour smoke then straight into the canner and bypass the brine. The salty brine just doesn't appeal to me with canned tuna. I could be wrong though, I have never tried it.
thanks for the information.

[BaitStop]

I usually save the tuna bellies or belly loins for smoking. The bellies are oilier & stay moister than the back loins when brined & smoked.

[Weather or Knot]

Originally Posted by Chum Bucket

I hot smoke the whole loin until it's about 1/3 cooked and then can it!!! I use the same dry brine as my salmon. I add garlic and white pepper. It really makes a mess of the smoker and takes some time, but I enjoy the smoked version better than plain.

C B putting some some aluminum foil around in the bottom of your smoker and over the drip tray makes the clean up alot easier. I to like the smoke flavored canned tuna better than the plain and I also throw in a couple of pieces of fresh jalapinos for a kick!:blush:

[TJB]

I cheat and take the loins to Otto's Sausage in Portland. Their pepper smoke is the best!

[pontoonbandit]

Guys, I just pulled the Tuna off the smoker and it turned out awesome!!! My wife, mother and law, sister and her boyfriend all loved it too. Thanks for everyones suggestions and tips. I honestly think it turned out better than the salmon. Enjoy watching the big game tommorrow.

[Billfisher]

"Is it necessary to brine the tuna if you only plan to smoke for an hour then can. "

NO it is not. I canned some that I did just that with this year, and it turned out awesome. I added Jalapenos to the smoked, canned, and it was even better! Next year I'll add Garlic!

[pearl]

UPDATE.........

Well, thanks to all of the advice above and a call at home from Woody I did a small test batch of Yellow Fin that I caught this past Wednesday.

Here is how I smoked it.

• Brine - 1/2 cup coarse Kosher salt / 1 cup packed brown sugar / 1/2 cup Yoshidas Gourmet sauce.
• Placed brine and tuna in a 1 gallon baggie rotating every 20 minutes for a total brining length of 2 hours.
• Sprinkled fresh coarse ground pepper.
• Rinsed and air dried (with fan) until fully dry & tacky.
• Smoked with alder @ 165 degree untill 115 degree internal meat temp was reached.

Over all I was pleased with the outcome of the final product though I have some ideas of how to tweak it just a bit in the future.

Thanks again everybody. I appreciate the help.

[Skipper]

30 Min in the smoker (not brined) before canning.

1. Heat Big or Little Chief Smoker.
2. Cut Raw Tuna loins to 1/2" shorter than jar (I use wide mouth pints).
3. Place pieces on racks and load into smoker.
4. Put in one pan of wood chips (I like apple).
5. Remove after 30 min
6. Follow Home canning process.

Cheerio'
Skipper

[Moldy45]

That looks tasty!

[Weather or Knot]

I open two packages for the Super Bowl party and guess what, NONE LEFT!:grin: