This recipe for smoked bluefish works equally well with mackerel, trout, or salmon. I will never be able to replicate that first smoked mackerel, but that wonвЂ™t stop me from trying. Seafood is another great option when youвЂ™re looking for a quick smoked meal.

Sometimes IвЂ™ll come home after a long day of work, grab a beer, get my Weber kettle grill going, put a handful of woodchips on the charcoal, and throw on some pork chops (or a steak) and 15 minutes later, I have delicious smoked meat for dinner. There are many great, quick, and simple ways of producing smoked foods. Smoking doesnвЂ™t always have to be a long, laborious process. Bake until bluefish reaches 135вЏ on an instant-read thermometer, about 7 minutes. Using an offset spatula or butter knife, spread aioli evenly all over fillets.

Place your herbs on top of the butter and the lemon. Cut some squares of butter and arrange them on top of the lemon slices. Once thats done, place your lemon slices along the fillet. Sprinkle 2 to 3 pinches of salt and 1 pinch of black pepper on the fillet. When people ask me about my love of smoked food, this memory looms large. Pat bluefish fillets dry with paper towels and arrange on baking sheet. Season and garnish the fillet in the center of the foil. The mackerel was still warm from the smoker, and the oak smoke balanced perfectly with the briny oil of the fish, with the delicate flesh flaking apart and melting in my mouth. I can remember that first bite so vividly. My brother and I decided that buying our dad some smoked mackerel would be the perfect FatherвЂ™s Day present - one that we would benefit from. The village we were staying in had one of those classic, large, white plastered buildings with a big smokestack, right on the waterвЂ™s edge. My first time eating smoked mackerel is one of those Proustian memories: It was FatherвЂ™s Day, and we were in Cornwall, England, for a family trip.

Bluefish fillet