Hot Smoked Cod Roe

Method

The protective skin must not burst.

Returned home rinse cod roe in cold water and put it up in a pot. For each 1 kg cod roe pour 2 liters of cold water. Add 100 g of salt and 50 grams of sugar and various spices, see above. Well! Try to find your own taste.

Bring pot to the boiling max. 90 °C and immediately turn down the heat as cod roe only simmer for 10 to 15 minutes for small cod roe and from 15 to 30 minutes for large cod roe. Take the pot of the heat and place to cold until the next day with the cod roe in the “soup”. It is not meant the cod roe will be finished cooked right to the center, it must of course be smoked afterwards. When you do it this way, cod roe seems not so hard and dry as if you just smoked it in “fresh” state. I cooked my 2 cod roe of 1 kg in total for 20 minutes.

Now the cod roe is taking out of the “soup” and set to drain for a few hours on a cold and dry place. I like using my Smoking Oven for drying place, because it is cold in January and February. Take the cod roe from Smoking Oven before you fired up on this. After a half to a full hour has Smoking Oven reaches 70 °C and smoke production is well underway. The cod roe is quickly put on the grate and the “Hat” is closed with a small 1 cm crevice provides a draft in the smoke oven, allowing water vapor to escape quickly.

I may have 12 cod roe in two layers in my Smoking Oven so that corresponds to approx. 12 kg cod roe.

Now the cod roe must be smoked:
Oven temperature starting at 70 °C. The cod roe are smoked in 2 to 3 hours with the “Hat” slightly open.
The oven temperature is reduced to 67 °C and cod roe are smoked for 2 hours with closed hat.
Total 4 to 5 hours. 5 hours sounds a lot, but it is great cod roe from cod of 10 kg.

Alternative method for smaller roe

f you just need to smoke a few cod roe – as shown here ½ kg – it is too much work to start the big Smoking Oven. Therefore I use a “Lunchbox” Smoking Oven on my camping gas. Do it this way, you get a good result.

Add 1 cm smoking wood dust at the bottom – 3 handfuls beech wood and 1 handful juniper wood – set drip tray and grid on, place the cod roe on the grid. Put the lid on, but there must be a small opening in one side so the steam can escape. Power up and let it “burn” in 15 minutes. Turn off the gas and then let it rest for 20 minutes. Turn on again with the lid completely closed for 10 minutes and then turn off of the gas. Let it rest in the “Box” for 1 hour before the cod roe be eaten.

Serving

Serving: I would just come up with a good recipe for a piece of bread and butter with “Smoked cod roe”. Cut two nice pieces along the cod roe put them on garlic butter toast with a lettuce leaf and put remoulade on top sprinkled with finely crushed red onion.

Garnish: A lemon slice and cut cress on top.

Drink: A cold beer and a dram is extremely well suited to this.

Hint: The cod roe can be freed from skin and stired with mayonaise. Butter on bread and you have a snack.