THANKS COYOTE

[12inchlunker]

Hey Coyote thank you so much for that smoke kitty you made for me. I can honestly say I have never had better fish in my life! I have been laid up with surgery all month and unable to get out much. That was a very cool thing....I supplied fish you supplied the rest. I truly appreciate it and it was truly amazing!
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[jdawg183]

That Yote, he is a good man!

[CoyoteSpinner]

Aw gosh....too kind. Glad for it - always extra room in the smoker. Now getting a fillet knife through that phat frozen cat - THAT took some doing!!

Anytime I hear from folks that say they don't like fish - I figures they just haven't had it prepped right. Maybe fall will bring on some more kitty action.

But tonight - it's beer battered perch! I'll bring ya some leftovers for lunch!

[12inchlunker]

SWEEEETTTT
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[CoyoteSpinner]

[quote 12inchlunker]SWEEEETTTT[/quote]

that depends on how much Cajun Spice gets on there! [shocked]

[TyeDyeTwins]

[quote CoyoteSpinner]
Anytime I hear from folks that say they don't like fish - I figures they just haven't had it prepped right.
[/quote]

True that! Especially when they say "the larger ones don't taste any good". What type of smoker do you have, model name and all please. I am looking into getting one myself as tube dude has fed me kitties and trout. Just waiting for him to sneak a lure in there to have a fight of his life. 215 pounds of flesh has to be a good fight!
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[CoyoteSpinner]

More likely - you'll find you dipped into his smoked Carp instead of smoked Cat if you raid he freezer! [shocked]
Lunker's gone off on [url "http://www.bigfishtackle.com/cgi-bin/gforum/gforum.cgi?post=677809;#677809"]smoked kitty[/url] before.

I usually don't have to worry about big-fish, since I usually catch dinks!
Bigger fish'll have more of a fat-layer on the sides, but if you take the time and fillet 'em right - you trim that off.

I'll often smoke Salmon with the skin on, but then pull the skin off and scrape out the "grey" before serving. Eliminates much of the "fishy" flavor that many folks find distasteful. (one of TD's Fillet Catfish pix)
Pat's got a number of writeups on filleting, grilling, and smoking fish. (check that post-link up top)
[inline "FILLETING 7.jpg"]

I've got three smokers (and a nice nat.gas grill - which I LOVE too). One's an old charcoal bullet-shaped smoker. Much heavier cast than the kind you'll find at Home-Depot, but it doesn't have any access doors. Found it in a spring cleanup pile on the curb. Smoked salmon to turkey on it.
It's got little to no heat control - and to refresh the wood chips - you've gotta remove the grill, then lift the water-bowl.

Found a Little Chief top-loader - but I think it needs a new burner element - makes smoke, but hardly any heat. Plus I find the top-load awkward - if you want to 'rotate' your shelves - have to lift the whole thing out. And it's kinda tuff to check what's happening.

By FAR my favored unit is my [url "http://www.campchef.com/smoke-vault-24.html"]Camp-Chef[/url] (link) Smoke Vault. It's big, has lots of shelves, propane fired - excellent temperature control - plus easy access to check on, baste/mop, or rotate contents. My work is neighbors with CampChef here in Logan, and they had a sale where I got it for $180. Still not cheap, but still - about half the list price. I've gotten my money's worth out of it I'll say.
From all kinds of fish, ribs, turkeys, roasts (hmmm - pork shoulder!).
The basics of most of my rubs/marinades are typically - salt/pepper(s)/garlic/onion/sugar (usually brown). But various other 'ingredients' can find their way in there.
I usually add some fresh herbs to the water tray. And types of wood can make worlds of difference. I tend to like fruit woods, but nuts do nice too.

Couple web links:
http://www.bbqu.net/
http://allrecipes.com/HowTo/smoking-foods/detail.aspx
http://bbq.about.com/cs/barbecuetips/a/aa032198a.htm
[inline C3.Smoker.jpg]

[inline C4.Rackitup_plus.JPG]

[inline C5.PuffTheMagicDragon.jpg]

Maybe I'll snap a few more photos and put together a PDF writeup like 'some' folks are known to do!

[Troll]

I have a little chief that is the same way. Not enough heat to get the chamber up to pork temp. I like it for fish. The 140 to 150 seems perfect for salmon, trout and perch. Dries out jerky without making it to hard, which I like.
I also have a Bradley. Many don't like the briquets that they use for the smoke, It's my least favorite thing too. I sure do like being able to load it up and not have to tend to it all day. It has a hot spot though, I have to watch how I load it to make sure that spot has the thickest pork fat over it so it barks up nice.
It will maintain 190 degrees all day, no problem.
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