“Dredgey, I have two rainbow trout in the freezer. Will you smoke them for me, please?”
I can’t tell you how happy I am to be able to ring a neighbour and ask him this on a Saturday morning. Farmed rainbow trout are a good buy at the moment, with these two fish costing me $11 in total. I took them out of the freezer first thing in the morning, and they were defrosted by early afternoon…
The smoker is a small metal box with holes in it. For some reason, I always think of smoking as a difficult process, but it’s actually incredibly easy.
Dredgey began by pouring a small mound of hickory sawdust onto the base of the smoker. The fish was laid out on a foil-lined metal plate (old pizza tray) on a wire rack, and placed over the wood. The lid of the box was positioned on securely to keep the smoke in.
An old tuna tin was half filled with methylated spirits and lit, then the smoker was placed on top of it. We sat and chatted for twenty minutes while the fish cooked to perfection – tender flaky flesh, with just the lightest smoke flavour…
Pete’s not a fan of smoked meats, but Big Boy and I adore them…
We gave one fish to Dredgey, who then swapped half of it for squid with Louise across the road. Have I mentioned how much I love our neighbourhood?
Do you own a smoker? If so, what do you use it for? Dredgey has smoked everything from fish to sausages to almonds in his little box!
Fig Jam and Lime Cordial 
I saw your lovely fish pics on the weekend. I’ve heard that a Weber can be used to smoke things too, but don’t know the facts about how to do it.
We no longer have a barbecue! I’ve been toying with the idea of getting a smoker like Dredgey’s, but I may just keep imposing on my neighbour instead.. ;-)
and I tried smoking oysters one time as well. Sensational. they were soft and juicy – with just a hint of smokiness. nothing like the tinned variety Mum served with jatz crackers when we were growing up. Which I admit to still liking…
They sound divine! I had a big weakness for the tinned ones when I was younger too…
I love your neighbours too Celia! I’ve never smoked anything. To be honest I don’t really like the smokey flavour. Having said that I tried smoked mozzarella recently and it was mouthwatering!
Claire, I hope you find your new neighbours are equally as wonderful! Pete doesn’t like the smokey flavour either – he doesn’t even like it when I cook things like smoked rice or use smoke salt as flavouring!
We love the smokey flavours too Celia, so delicious! I smoke things in our covered bbq sometimes and it seems to work OK. Smoked trout is such a lovely rich meat, and it tastes great with horseradish cream- yummo xox
Becca, apparently you can use the BBQ quite successfully! We don’t own one anymore, so I’ve never tried! :)
That fish looks perfect! My son Luke smokes fish and poultry- we were there one week and he made some marvelous meals.
Isn’t it lovely when your sons cook for you! How fabulous, Heidi! :) x
Hey I even want to move into your neighbourhood. Although all I have to contribute is cake :P That trout fillet looks divine!
It really was, Lorraine! We ate it on pita bread crackers for dinner that night! :)
I love smoked meats! Those pictures are making my mouth water! What a wonderful thing to learn about.
Clare, the little smoker isn’t very expensive, and if you love smoked meats, it might be a good investment! I think Dredgey got his at the camping store! :)
I love smoked meats. Fish, turkey, jerky, and even some types of cheese! Yours looks mouth-watering delicious; smoked to perfection.
Manuela, the nice thing about having it home smoked is that unlike the bought smoked trout, ours wasn’t brined first (at least, that’s what we think they do), so the texture was very soft. It was delicious!
That does sound easy (and very civilised). I too had assumed it was more difficult. I once read a blog post about smoking bacon and had a piece of pork belly in the freezer for ages to try it but roasted it instead.
Jo, I can relate, I read home made bacon posts all the time, and I’m always put off by how difficult the process seems to be!
I haven’t smoked anything. Like you, I thought it would be a lot more complicated. Who knew all you really need is a little box and a few spoonfuls of sawdust. I love how everyone in your street is swapping and sharing their wares – I bet you started it, Celia! xx
Charlie, it astonished me how easy it was! And you are always so nice, but the swapping on the street started well before I got here! :)
I no longer have a smoker, Celia. The last one almost set fire to my porch and I’ve kind of lost interest. I’ve seen the type of smoker you used here, though, and have been tempted to venture into that world again. Those 2 trout sure are persuasive. :)
See, John, having something almost set fire to my house would be enough to make me lose interest too. :)
Hidden talent just around the corner that I did not know about! Now we will all be lining up…watch out Dredgey!
Ha! Now you know, Nic! We have a neighbourhood smoke box! :)
Happy to take bookings….
Hi Celia, I have never thought of a smoker but I sure like smoked chicken and Turkey, maybe … I love the way neighbours hand things out. My neighbours in Perth & Bridgetown are equally generous. The trouble is sometimes we all have the same thing!!
Glenda, we’re fortunate to have a mix of skills and goods to share here.. ;-)
We have a smoker and all that’s needed ready to go! Thanks for this Celia.
Lizzy, that’s exciting! I hope it works well for you! :)
Another thing to try!
Anne, it was SO easy that I’ve been toying with the idea of buying my own smoker box, EVEN though Pete doesn’t like smoked meats! :)
We bought a heavy duty smoker for the deck a year ago and loving it but still continue to do the smaller things as follows – line a wok with tin foil, add 1/2 cup of tea mix (I use the one with rice in it) and a small grid to stand the meat/fish on. Put the wok on the heat, add the marinaded/seasoned meat/fish, put on the lid and the food will be cooked/smoked in about 15 – 20 minutes. Turn the heat down about 1/2 way through the cooking. And … ensure the exhaust fan is on throughout so the smoke alarm is not activated! Easy peasy, economical cooking and cleaning up.
Sandy, that’s a great tip, thank you! We have an old wok which would be perfect for that!
particularly delicious with tiny minted lamb chops
Waw! Home smoked trout! What can be better in flavour? Yummmm! The smoked trout looks amazing, dear friend! Yummm!
Sophie, thank you! We are very lucky to have such great neighbours, and the fish was divine! :) xx
I bet! :) x
I LOVE most anything smoked and those look absolutely wonderful. I think I will look into that.
I’d need to do it outside though and we don’t really go in for covered decks or porches over here!
Sounds like a fairweather recipe!
Pat, it’s not something to do on the deck actually – Dredgey puts his smoker on the concrete in his backyard. It definitely is fair weather cooking! It might set fire to a timber deck (see John’s comment above!). xx
What a bargain all round Celia :)
You’re so right Tandy, my $11 fish led to an afternoon with neighbours, and a feed for three families! :)
Smoked trout is a favorite of mine. We used to have a large smoker but left it behind in one of our moves.
Karen, I loved the whole smoked baby trout, but my neighbour usually smokes large ocean trout fillets. Apparently rainbow trout and ocean trout are actually the same variety!
That is so interesting…I’ve only had the rainbow trout.
I must hang my head in shame – we have used our smoker all of twice! Shocking, I know. Promise when Pete is next home, we WILL smoke something – not sure what yet.
Love trout and smoked it must be fabulous!
:-) Mandy xo
Mandy darling, that’s not a head-hanging thing! :) If taking photos of Dredgey’s smoker has inspired you to use yours more, then you’ve made this post worthwhile for me, thank you! :)
mmm. I grew up on smoked fish and trout is the best! My Grandpa made his own smoker out of an old fridge, it works great!
Bernice, a whole fridge! He must have had a lot to smoke in there!
yes, he did. With six boys in the family they often had a lot of fish to smoke. He also used to pickle them.
I went to visit my mum this weekend. When I asked her for her pickle recipe, she said she doesn’t have a pickle recipe…and I don’t think you’d want to follow her process either. This year many of her jars didn’t seal properly and as a result several have spoiled. Not a good track record.
Oh I can taste that trout now. I love trout, especially rainbow trout but my husband just doesn’t care for it. I remember fishing for them with my father and we’d get them off the hook, cleaned & in an old fry pan over a fire beside the river. Doesn’t get any fresher than that.
And how lucky you are to have a neighbor who will smoke them for you!
Diane, that just sounds wonderful – cooked within minutes of being caught! We are indeed very lucky to have such a kind neighbour! :)
I used to use my wok to smoke chicken, fish, etc. but haven’t done so for a long time.
Norma, we finally have an old wok that I’d be happy to try this in – I’ve never wanted to trash my woks before by using them for smoking!
Dredgey’s sister here reporting in from Spain with neighbour Louise’s sister!
I know how good that smoked trout is – think Dredgey also serves it with an Asian type salad?
Hola sister!
I have a hot smoker but rarely use it. I love smoked food but for some reason never thought to do trout in it. Duh! You have inspired me to give this a go next time I come across fresh trout. They are slightly tricky to find at times; whenever I actually want them they are nowhere to be found.
Tania, rainbow trout must be farmed in NSW, because we now have a steady supply of it! Hope you track some down! :)
We have a smoker box its an upright one and I’ve smoked whole chickens and chicken fillets which taste lovely also a piece of corned silverside smoked its delicious.
I’ve never heard of a smoked corned beef before! That sounds very interesting, I’ll have to pass it on to Dredgey, thanks!
smoked trout is SO delicious, and what a bargain for you, buying it already smoked is $40+ per kilo! What a gorgeous neighbourhood you have Celia!
Lisa, we really do! :)
Just saw this post as I was about to hot smoke some mackerel – Guy caught 17 at the seaside and we’ve just brought them home. Our smoker is an old bread bin that Guy drilled holes in. Can’t wait!
Ooh, I never considered making our own smoker! 17 mackerel, that’s quite a haul, Andrea! :)
I had a smoker for your but I moved so many times I got rid of it which annoys me now, a lot. Some meats are brined before smokng but a lot of the more delicate meats like your fishies are just painted with a liquid smoke or pumped with a little bit of saline ( salty water) before smoking.. Looks so very delicious Celia……
Tania, so many different methods! I do know that the fish Dredgey smokes is very different to the ones we buy in the shops…