Cold smoke

I've decided to try to "macgyver" a cold smoker with my bbq.  First I need to something to smoke.  I chose to use salmon because cold smoked salmon is absolutely delicious.   I've been using a recipe for gravlax I found by Julia Child for a long time now so I've decided to do a little twist on that.  

http://www.food.com/recipe/julia-childs-traditional-gravlax-119184

Gravlax is quite easy to make.  It's a dry curing process with basically just salt,  sugar and some time.

1 lb salmon fillet,  skin on
1tbsp kosher salt
2tbsp white sugar or brown(basically two parts sugar one part salt) 
1 tsp of mustard powder
1 oz vodka
Fresh dill
Black pepper

Rinse the fish,  make sure all the pin bones are taken out.  Be sure to use a baking pan big and deep enough for the fish, the salt will drain out extra liquid.  Mix the salt and sugar and mustard together with a little black pepper.   Add a small layer of the mixture to the salmon lightly covering the whole fish,  including the skin.  Then add dill,  be sure to cover the fish completely with dill,  then add the rest of the salt, sugar mixture.  And finally add the vodka,  be sure to rub everything into the fish lightly.  Then you want to weigh it down slightly, use a sheet pan with a couple canned goods on top, then refrigerate for about 2 days.   After one day remove weights and taste and flip the fish. There will be a liquid on the bottom of the pan,  do not dump it out.  Cover the fish and refrigerate for another day.   Keep in mind the curing process is completely up to your taste.  After one day if you think its too salty take it out maybe add more sugar,  if not let it cure longer.

After the gravlax is just about done curing, about 3 days,  remove from fridge and rinse the salt and sugar mixture off and dry with paper towel

Right now this is pretty much ready to eat,  but we want to add smoke don't we?  I have set up a hot smoking method in my bbq with indirect heat,  but I don't want to hot smoke it. Thankfully I live in Canada and it is about - 15 outside and to cold smoke means smoking at about 22 degrees Celsius or lower.  I need to control the heat in a way that it doesn't cook the fish but adds that beautiful smoke flavour. So I put snow in the bbq.  In a few cake tins I added snow to try to keep the temperature in the bbq as low as possible 

First you need wood pouches in order to smoke.  So I added apple wood chips in some water and soaked it for about 10 min and using tin foil as the pouch add a small handful of wet and dry wood chips.   I also added left over dill just for some flavour.  

Second I removed one grate from the bbq and add the wood pouches directly on the fire so begin smoking, the fish will go on the side away from the heat 

As the pouches begin to smoke the heat will be rising  

So this is where the snow comes in.  I basically just add as much snow as I can to bring the heat down 

I moved one of the pouches directly under the fish for a more intense smoke. 

For me this process took about an hour and a half constantly changing the wood pouches and the snow, because it would melt.  Once and a while, I tasting the salmon until it achieved the flavour I was looking for. 

After the fish is consumed you will be left with a salty fish skin,  don't throw that out.  If you pan fry it until golden and crispy it's a wonderful treat as well 

Trip to the market

One of my favourite places to go shopping would have to be the tnt grocery store.  You can basically find everything,  from Japanese hairy crab to ducks feet and pigs blood.   

Not only do they have an amazing sea food and meat selection,  they also have a selection of fruits from all over the world. 

I decided to pick up a couple fruits that I have never had before,  a cactus pear,  or prickly pear,  and rambutan.  

This is the cactus pear

One of the most interesting things about the prickly pear is that it makes you itchy.   If you do not clean it properly it will leave tiny little quills on your hands and irritate your skin.   

This fruit is part of the cactus family and are abundant in the Americans; California and Mexico but can also be found in various places around the world such as Australia due to colonists transporting the fruit. 

This is the rambutan 

This fruit is native to Malaysia and is closely related to other tropical fruits such as lychee. 

This is what these fruits look like on the inside. 

The rambutan is very much like lychee,  I would use it in desert or a cocktail. 

The prickly pear is a lot like dragon fruit.   Almost like bubble gum,  very mild and not very sweet for a fruit so intensely vibrant.   It stains your fingers and could be used as a good colour agent,  but does not carry a lot of flavour.  The texture is soft and mild.