Speaking of smoked salmon

I never liked smoked salmon much.

Smoked wild Sockeye salmon
Then several years ago some friends of mine, one of whom is from Alaska, visited Fairbanks and brought back some salmon his dad smoked in the back yard. That's common in Alaska. Smoking salmon in the back yard. And this stuff was just *delicious*. That inspired me to try some smoked salmon from Harry and David. Which was very good but it wasn't like the homemade stuff. It was enough to make we want to try some less expensive, more easily available stuff.

Smoked salmon is complicated. I've come to generally like smoked salmon. But "Smoked Scottish Salmon" is *not* "Scottish Smoked Salmon" which, by the way, is *not* "Salmon smoked in Scotland". Which is not the same as "Scottish Style Smoked Salmon". Which is dry brined and hardwood cold smoked.

Surprisingly I find I generally like the Ruby Bay products. They're near the East River in Brooklyn! Who ever would have thought. They have a broad selection of smoked salmon products.

Ruby Bay smoked salmon
In this case, it's "Norwegian Style" Smoked Salmon. The salmon is sugar cured with spices and cold smoked over fruitwood smoke. Usually.

Turns out over time and testing I like "Irish Style" smoked salmon.

Irish Style Smoked Salmon (lower half of the frame)
Which is cold smoked over peat smoke. It has a lovely texture. See how shiny that salmon is? It's not at all wet. The top half of the frame there is a maple cured hot smoked salmon. With cracked peppercorns. Obviously I couldn't decide what I wanted. I like dill with salmon and smoked salmon is especially good with hard boiled or scrambled eggs.

Or with cucumber and red onions..and...pickled herring?

Smoked salmon and inlagd sill
I prefer wild salmon and Alaskan salmon (Coho, Sockeye and King) is just about the only wild salmon left. Norwegian, Irish, Scottish and even Nova Scotia salmon is almost universally farmed. It's extremely rare to find wild salmon in Europe.

I'm not sure I'm ready for smoked salmon mousse but a little piece of smoked salmon fillet is excellent on a cracker. With a slice of avacado.

Oh! And have a nice Pinot Noir with your smoked salmon!

Love this Pinot Noir!

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Edited (18 December 2011) to add: I've learned more about smoked salmon! It turns out that an awful lot of smoked fish products (not just salmon) come from Brooklyn. Brooklyn is highly regarded in the smoked fish business. The smokehouses around the East River supply the greater New York City area with tons and tons of smoked fish. The quality whitefish, bluefish, mackerel, herring, salmon and trout get consistently good reviews. I had no idea really. Even the peppered mackerel I've enjoyed for years comes from Brooklyn!