NOVA LOX (aka. Cold Smoked Salmon)

Detailed guide to making your own homemade Nova Lox. This is an incredibly easy recipe and it costs a small fraction of the price of buying Nova Lox at your local deli. Pair this with a bagel, dill, cream cheese and some cucumbers and you're set!
#NovaLox #Lox #Gravlax
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[@AntiDot70]

You really don't have to smoke it for 24 hours. 6 is perfectly fine if your generator produces a lot of smoke. Sugar and salt has already cured the fish, so smoking is anly adding a flavour and extending the experation time. The key no one tells you about is to wrap it in in plastic foil right after smoking and throw it in the fridge for another 24 hours. I cannot stress this enough how much this will help in making the final product outstanding and lasting more.

[@Milllarman]

Brilliant advice, thank you

[@Whats_Up_Chicken-Butt]

I can't believe you had the stamina to slice so many pieces BEFORE the taste test!! My mouth is literally watering just watching this; I'm so jealous right now:-(

[@richardwong7473]

Easy to follow instructions. Can't wait to try it for myself! Thanks for the video

[@mikicin111able]

Thanks for the video, did mine over white oak and tried it as soon as It was done, I thought it was ruined because of the amount of the smoke flavor but when it sat in the fridge for over 24 hours that smoke flavor went through entire salmon and it was great, turned out to be the best smoked salmon I ever had.

[@m3man680]

Great video, I’ve been doing everything right except the last part. I have been starting the cut from the thick end. Makes so much more sense to start from the tail end.

[@geniuspharmacist]

I subscribed immediately. Great cooking, stellar explanation, nice attitude and personality. Love the fact that you feature other channels on yours. Excellent job, keep up the good work. Wishing you more success.

[@freespeech4all723]

I did this for my first time. Wow...so much better than the store bought. Thanks for the tutorial. I'll be doing this from now on.

[@BBQandBottles]

So glad to hear you enjoyed it!

[@Zinchuk_Media]

God bless you and your family for your time and effort 🎊🙌

[@appalachianjungle5816]

Thank you! I am so excited to try his with my dad!

[@BBQandBottles]

Send us a picture of the final outcome and we’ll share it with our community on Instagram! Good luck!

[@jayfogarty7544]

I've used different woods for salmon but Alder wood has been my go to!!! Might want to try them out.

[@jakefinn7905]

WOW! That was an awesome how-to. thank you!

[@cliffyleathersons5848]

I may try this Saturday. My wife says she doesn't like salmon. Pift...suuuuure. thank you for taking the time to make this content

[@nickhargis8325]

Great video. Thanks for the info. Going to try it now

[@BBQandBottles]

Thanks Nick. Appreciate the kind words and good luck with the salmon.

[@tamra9396]

That looks delicious. I would be eating it before it makes it to the bagel. 🤗

[@issigeier9617]

Excellent video!!! I made my fresh Solomon using 36hr curing and 5Hr smoking and I got very good results. I am living in a hot weather country and I came up with the innovative idea and solution for how to do cold smoking with temperature of more then 31 degree Celsius outside. I am placing cooler ice gel packs of 1 liter on the Grilling net and put the Salmon skin down on the cooling packs that were before in my freezer. I have done already three batches of cold smoking that way and got good results. The cooling packs are good for about 3 Hr, so make sure you have more packs in your freezer for replacement during the smoking process. Enjoy.

[@BBQandBottles]

Great idea Issi glad it turned out for you.

[@danoconnor615]

How could you not eat that whole thing in one day? Great job!

[@lv2mine]

Great video. Learned a lot. Can't wait to do at home too. Cheers!!!💯🥂😁

[@sbeebakhee]

By far the best thing I have ever learned thank you...

[@BBQandBottles]

Glad to hear that Shiva. I hope you enjoy it!

[@TheRabidPosum]

I've used torches to solder, braze, and cut steel. Never saw one used in cooking. This is a really cool process I'd love to try.

[@FlexibleToast]

It gets used a lot if you look into the sous vide method of cooking. That's actually the only reason I even bought my torch, like the one he used in this video.

[@hamsicle]

Love this video, thanks.

[@LaTashaChante]

I love this!

[@rainyday9068]

This is one of my favorite food on this planet. I would find 5 star hotels that serves this on their breakfast menu and I would go eat there until I am loaded! Now, I know how to fix it, I am certainly going to try this. Thanks so much for the video.

[@BBQandBottles]

Should save you a few dollar vs going to a 5 star hotel too 😉

[@eltonsbbq-pit]

Gonna try to make this Nova Lox.. Cheers from Norway

[@johnbailey3704]

Great video, thanks!

[@johnnieandtheinvader7218]

First comment ever. Great job. I live in Florida, so the time of year to make it is quickly passing. I have a fantastic recipe that I can’t wait to try. Thanks to your great demonstration of how to cold smoke I think I could be successful at re-creating what you showed here today. Thank you so much!

[@BBQandBottles]

No problem. Good luck!!!

[@matthart4465]

Catching your own salmon is the way to go. It's the freshest way to get it. That's the most amazing lox you can make.

[@stephenholland3801]

Thanks for the video. I’m trying this now. I threw some nutmeg in the mixture, so we’ll see how that goes.

[@vondang3013]

Great Job!

[@brandonlarson9251]

Coming from a guy that's not that fond of fish, that looked absolutely amazing. I guess I'll have to make a run to Costco and get me a salmon fillet now. Well done

[@BBQandBottles]

Thanks Brandon. Really appreciate the feedback and let us know how it goes. Shot us a pic and we’ll give you a shoutout on our Instagram feed.

[@underated17]

Sir Brandon salmon is amazing! It’s the best fish! Smoked, raw in sushi or cooked properly are all enjoyable!

[@Kd2393]

Amazing work 👏

[@BBQandBottles]

Thank you! Cheers!

[@karinecarde1254]

Merci Monsieur! Bonne recette 😊

[@Zinchuk_Media]

Thank you brother 🙏

[@wopac53]

Looks great

[@jwwhetzel2737]

Awesome presentation

[@dank9358]

What a well done video excellent

[@MyCultureDatingcom]

Very good thank you

[@MedTwice]

Just pulled mine off the smoker and had lox and bagels for breakfast, amazing! Your detailed instructions made this so simple. Lox has always been a special occasion food because it is so expensive, this changes everything! Thanks for the great video. I live by a lake stocked with trout, I'm going to try this with trout next time I catch a few.

[@BBQandBottles]

Comments like these are what keep us going. Glad you enjoyed it and I’m already drooling about your trout.

[@TheShaunmdevine]

How did the trout turn out? I have a chunk of salmon and trout curing right now. Will be ready to smoke monday

[@mclala2421]

I'll be trying this on a smaller piece of Salmon , thank you for sharing. A Lox/Nova Sandwich breakfast is easily $10 I could make my own and have Lox (No smoker) all week at the fraction of what it would have cost me.

[@BBQandBottles]

You bet. So much cheaper to do this yourself!!

[@Zinchuk_Media]

Cheers from Ontario 🤹‍♂️

[@s.daniel8016]

Thank you!

[@furgellvanrabenswaay3483]

Good job

[@bdfree901]

Bravo!!!

[@assuta_ashdod_or]

Good evening. Thanks for the great video. I want to learn cold smoking and i understand that you dont need to put cured salmon in fresh water to make it less salty... Is the way we cure pork for example is the same? what is the proportions of salt/sugar/weight? do we need to put already cured meat into fresh water overnight or just do same process as u showed on salmon? thank u for answering

[@jordanhoffman7257]

Thank you for this fantastic video and recipe. I have made it several times. Most recently, I found that after curing for 48 hours, the thinner end of the fish, towards the tail, is cured to the point of being almost jerky like. At the same time, the thickest part of the fish is more like the way that salmon or lox should look. Is there something different that I should be doing?

[@jimmysmith484]

My new favorite recipe! Can’t wait to fire up the smoker this weekend!

[@humblefrank1532]

I'm impressed. I saved this video.👌

[@Zinchuk_Media]

Wow 👌👍👍👍👍

[@thegalleryBBQ]

I'm a big fan of this just wish I ate it more....

[@1MrBigred]

Fantastic video! I've done my own cold cured salmon but I love smoked Nova Lox, it's too hot here right now in the south but bookmarked for giving it a shot in the fall. Also, if you do this again would be interested in your thoughts on removing the skin before the curing, and/or before smoking if it results in any different end-product, or if it makes slicing the final pieces any easier? Thanks again

[@BBQandBottles]

Thanks for the feedback. Maybe we should try some Nova Lox experiments 😁 along the lines of the steak experiments we’ve been doing.

[@michaeltorres1263]

I've made lox a variety of times and did a few A/B experiments with curing skin on vs skin off. Skin off is much quicker and a more even cure. The cure is also greater with skin off because the cure mixture doesn't have to penetrate skin. The greater cure keeps the lox in the fridge for a longer period of time. The lox that came from the skin off lasted longer in the fridge without starting to get an off flavor. I much prefer skin off.

[@GreenChilliD]

Omg i cant wait

[@joecarter1414]

I live in Alaska so I make my lox from kings I catch. I will also use silver salmon but king is best. After salmon season I will have 40 or 50 pounds in the freezer also I vacuum seal it while curing

[@richsellskc]

nice job. just the way my grandma taught me. ;)

[@BBQandBottles]

Thanks Randie! 🙏

[@kristenhatherill9594]

when I cured my salmon, we poked holes in the skin side of the plastic wrap, placed it skin side down on a cooling rack, and set the rack in a rimmed cooking sheet. We used juice bottles, which is what we had on hand, to weight it down. This made clean up so much easier as the juices collected in the pan. We are waiting for a few more weeks for the wild salmon to come into season and will be trying your recipe! Can't wait!

[@BBQandBottles]

Sounds great. Looking forward to hearing about how our recipe goes on the wild salmon.

[@thinkingoutloud6741]

I’ve used the same smoke tube many many times and the amount of pellets he used never generates more than an hour or two of smoke for me. When I stuff it full, I can get 4-5 hours of smoke.

[@djd829]

Interesting. I have the same tube and just tried it for the first time in my grill. Just a dry run to see how the temp holds and how long it went. I didn't fill it all the way and it ran for like 5 hours. I'm sure the _type_ of wood you use matters too. I'm giving Alder a try.

[@kozmickarmakoala3526]

Just *mouthwatering* !!! Thanks from NYC ! *~:)

[@agatelapidary4217]

During the first step with the salt and sugar I like to tilt everything about 15 degrees so the liquid can drain off away from the fish

[@cmaur811]

I’m smoking a duck and a piece of salmon now hot smoke - can’t wait to try your nova.. though I don’t think a buggy cord would keep the bear away.lol

[@BBQandBottles]

If you’re trying to keep the bears away I think you’re gonna need to upgrade to military grade steel!

[@crosman177]

Yummy

[@donjaffe3650]

Hi. Thanks for the video. You said 24hr smoke? I'm looking to purchase a smoke tube, most say they last 5 hrs I'm assuming full. You only half filled yours and said 24hrs. Are you refilling it? How do you get half to last 24hrs? Thanks so much.

[@philippetherrien8753]

,looks very good.

[@BBQandBottles]

Thanks! I can honestly say it was

[@mlslosangeles7085]

Thanks for the great video and explanation. Do you think the salmon fillets from Costco are high quality enough to use? They have both farm-raised and wild-caught sockeye salmon fillets.

[@BBQandBottles]

I suspect they'd be fine to use. It's what my Mother-in-law goes for.

[@normanmerrill1241]

Thanks

[@briangleason5597]

I appreciate you showing each step. And You have the best recipe. Thank You Sir. I subscribed. Stay safe and healthy. I have a question the next time you make it would you show how you would put the capers what kind of cream cheese and what kind of bagels you would use no rush just sometime if you were to do it again would you show that please.

[@BBQandBottles]

Good idea Brian and welcome to the channel.

[@ediehunter2699]

Everything bagel, homemade cream cheese or Philadelphia cream cheese, capers on the cheese( think of salt when you add the capers or rinse the capers before adding) , red onion, then the sliced salmon. Enjoy

[@nathanh3316]

You make awesome videos

[@BBQandBottles]

Thanks Nathan. I really appreciate the feedback 👊👊👊

[@hummingbirdwest6869]

Just a question! Do you set the smoke to a specific temperature, or you just literally just smoke the salmon with the tube's pellets? I'd appreciate it. I've go the salmon, but want to know for sure about the last process. Thank you much!

[@timyung4143]

Well u certainly got me salivating. 😋 Must try!!! 😁 So, can just half a tube of hickory pellats lasts 12 hours😳? What outside temperature are we talking here please? Nite time here is only 10°C to 14°C😁.

[@TheEdrichard]

Great step-by-step guide! Question: Did the pellets in the pellet tube smolder the entire 12 hours? Or, did you need to add more in between to get the full 12 hours?

[@BBQandBottles]

I had to refill it twice.

[@dewiharmina5105]

Where to get the smoker tube ?

[@TheEdrichard]

@@dewiharmina5105 Amazon

[@waltzb7548]

I've done this twice with sockeye salmon and it came out incredibly delicious! I also like smoked white fish like cod haddock Herring Etc. Is there any safety concern using this procedure for a cold smoke on whitefish? I'm getting varied answers all over the place. To me it seems that a fish is a fish is a fish, and the risk of cold smoking anything will be the same from one fish species to another.

[@tristanrl1940]

Capers, lest we forget! An absolute must ingredient for proper Bagels - along with Nova Lox, slice raw red onion and tomato

[@larrypharher3698]

it looks great, and sounds easy enough. Question though. He says to use a 1/4c for every 2 lbs, but uses 1 cup of each. The math doesn't add up. Please confirm!

[@irisrothenberg7784]

What type of Salmon is best to use? Atlantic, sockeye, coho etc?

[@juanmanueldominguez827]

you can tell when he start drooling right about 11:26 lol

[@antonsim8614]

Great video. Thank you. I wonder if sugar free option is possible. going to try

[@BBQandBottles]

You bet. We have the sugar free video on our channel too. kzbin.info/www/bejne/h6XdiWOEmMmJha8

[@Bigbuddyandblue]

4:08 Thank you, Thing!

[@andrewschneregerful]

Quick question the description cold smoke tube says the smoke only last about 5 hours tops, do you keep refueling the smoke tube or let it be? Thanks looking forward to trying this recipe.

[@BBQandBottles]

I refilled it a couple of times. It just depends on how much smoke flavour you’re looking for in the fish.

[@andrewschneregerful]

@@BBQandBottles thanks! Definitely gonna be a fall/winter smoke so that I can monitor it during the day hahaha.

[@ElhtoIsland]

Hi! Loved the Video . How do I cook salmon on gas grill? Temperature? How long would I cook it for? Is hickory what is tradionally used?

[@BBQandBottles]

I usually go with a low heat of around 300F on the gas grill and cook it until you hit an internal temp of 145F. Time depends on the size of your fillet

[@richardhill2117]

That looked amazing, thank you! Question - Can you use Swerve brown sugar instead of regular brown sugar? My wife and I follow a Keto lifestyle. Thank you.

[@BBQandBottles]

I don’t see why you couldn’t Richard. You can also leave out the sugar entirely - we’ve done that before.

[@thunder_bug_1451]

@@BBQandBottles if I leave out the sugar should I substitute an equal amount of salt?

[@BBQandBottles]

No, I’ve left out the sugar entirely and it was fine without any other adjustment. The flesh of the fish doesn’t quite firm up the same way as regular lox does though.

[@joshuahorowitz4014]

Great step-by-step video, I followed your recipe, just put the fish in the fridge to cure. Do you think there’s any diminished quality (or heightened health risk) if I cure for 36 vs. 48 hours? I’d like to smoke tomorrow night overnight looking @ weather etc. Thanks!

[@BBQandBottles]

Nope, you’ll be fine either way. It will just be a little less cured and salted the shorter you go.

[@johnquinn7777]

Great Video, I live in Arizona and want to know if I can do this cold smoke over night with the heat in the 80's. Or do it over the winter and how long can the Salmon last after it's been smoked? thanks.

[@Meeko2689]

I’ve cold smoke salmon in the summer months, what you can do is add a Tupperware with some ice in the bbq to keep the fish cold while you fold smoke it

[@chrisw9445]

you didn't have to refill the pellets at all ? mine only burns for like 5-6h at a time.

[@casualobserver3145]

Great job! But, I beg to differ on one point. I’m quite sure I could put quite a dent in a fillet of that size. Only about half would make it past the cutting stage! Lol

[@jakethesnake9528]

Great video. You spoke as how to smoke overnight if weather is cool but, what about summer when temps during day is 90+ and nights are 80+ degrees? What is your suggestion for those situations for cold smoking?

[@BBQandBottles]

I’d suggest hot smoking.

[@jakethesnake9528]

@@BBQandBottles Thanks a million!

[@ronvavra]

Well, I'm about to find out if I have a solution because it's around 90 right now and will be tomorrow. I've cured my salmon and because it's too late in the day, will let it sit in fridge overnight. First thing in morning, I will start my smoker and put the salmon in with a bag of ice in the water tray. Because the smoker doesn't need to be opened to add wood chips, I am hoping to have created a mini fridge. Will add some more ice later in the day. fingers crossed. UPDATE: ten pound bag of ice did the trick. I never opened the door but felt the outside of the smoker and it felt cool. Cool!

[@rossbrandt]

@@ronvavra Yeah I tried this yesterday (temps over 90,) and it didn't work out so well, but I didn't use ice. I'm gonna wait for late fall to see what can be accomplished.

[@pinkeye00]

also the "juice" can be used in baking :)

[@JacksonWalter735]

Can I use a few drops of liquid smoke during the curing process if I don't have a smoker? Or would that affect the taste too much compared to cold smoking it?

[@BBQandBottles]

There have been a few comments here of people using liquid smoke and it turning out fine so I think you'd be okay using it.

[@pgreenx]

is there an indoor electric cold smoking machine I can buy for small batch salmon?

[@Miasma1]

Hi, how did you get the smoke tube to last for 12 hours?

[@BBQandBottles]

I reloaded it a few times.

[@andrewepp1682]

@@BBQandBottles also, how cold was the inside of that smoker. I know you said it stays cold where you're at in late spring, but does it have to be refrigerator temperature if you are cold smoking for more than four hours?

[@matttherrien9608]

I can do this without the top of the line Traeger on just regulat BBQ right? If I buy the pellets and the pellet box or whatever?

[@BBQandBottles]

You bet!

[@brianhenry5834]

what temperature do you smoke it at. you say cold smoke, but what temp in F ?

[@harryconte7222]

Does this technique work with skinless salmon and farm raised?

[@Spanishfutbol2010]

Does your traeger have a cold smoke setting ?

[@MarkNedostup]

Great video. Looks like no matter how skillfully you slice it, there's still some flesh left on the skin. Do you throw this away or scrape it off somehow?

[@BBQandBottles]

You can keep slicing deeper cuts with your knife until you get to the point where you’re comfortable you’ve got off the last edible bits.

[@WorldCollections]

Mark Nedostup What’s left I just suck directly from the skin with my mouth...to me that’s the bonus!

[@michaelberna987]

I haven't tried eating the skin in uncooked salmon, but when barbecued properly, i will eat skin along with it. Depends on the fish and how well it's prepared though. I've had some where the skin is not so good.

[@coloradoretreats]

If I don't have flamethrower will a lighter work?

[@grahamsoofer4218]

I always love the “slimy” lox. How do you get it to come out as such?

[@hq3473]

Less salt / reducing curing time. Use some nitrate salt for safety. Smoke in the winter are really low temps (40s F). Do at your own risk.

[@lukeacrey7571]

How cold does it need to be outside

[@stephaniegildnes4191]

Did you take the pin bones out? Thank you

[@johnruffner8637]

I'm trying this very soon and I can't wait for the smell of that Smoky salmon. I'll write an update

[@BBQandBottles]

Yeah, let us know how it turns out. Send us a picture of it on Instagram too and we’ll give you a shoutout there... or send it to [e-mail]. Good luck!!

[@lukeacrey7571]

Could you fill the pellets and use the tube vertically instead of horizontally to get a longer smoke time?

[@BBQandBottles]

Good question. I don’t see why not.

[@lukeacrey7571]

@@BBQandBottles also, I just made smoked salmon right now, and it’s really dry. Do you know why this may have happened?

[@BBQandBottles]

Following this recipe or are you saying you made hot smoked salmon? If it’s this recipe I’ve never heard or someone saying it’s dry. When you sliced your thin pieces of gravlox, you’re not getting the oil texture from the omega-3s in the fish?

[@lukeacrey7571]

@@BBQandBottles it was really dry toward the tail and I couldn’t get a nice slice, but maybe it’s because it was a small salmon. It was fine in the middle though

[@frenchustube]

The smoker tube in the link says that the smoke last 5 hours and you smoke it overnite. Do you refill it or ???? Thanks. the salmon looks great!

[@BBQandBottles]

Yep, you have to refill it a couple times.

[@jamesofarrell8015]

Great tutorial ! I think I followed the recipe closely and the taste was outstanding. However the texture was a bit different as it tended to flake when I sliced it. What could I have done wrong? Thanks.

[@brothrmark]

Guessing smoke temp got to high and cooked the fish?

[@jamesofarrell8015]

@@brothrmark Hi Mark, Thanks for your reply. I only lit the pellets in the cylinder, and placed it in the smoker. Never plugged in the smoker. Outdoor temperature was maybe 12-15 C maximum. Does the fire in the cylinder generate too much heat? Maybe I placed the cylinder too close to the salmon? I have a Pit Boss Series 5. James

[@imonkarim7358]

What's happens if I live in south Florida and don't have smoker it pretty hot here throughout the day only have gas grill what should do

[@BBQandBottles]

Well you don’t have to cold smoke it. You carve it up after the brine and just have gravlax