Homemade Salmon Jerky: Take 1

My friend Deanna got a dehydrator for Christmas and was debating what to make first. I threw out the idea of making salmon jerky. I first had it at Pike Place Fish Market in Seattle and loved it! It's sweet and peppery with a chewy texture. Trust me, it's much better than it sounds. Some people call it salmon candy.

I had a really hard time finding a recipe for salmon jerky though. There are tons of sites for making beef jerky--but salmon, not so much. I used a modified version of Alton Brown's recipe, but truthfully I'm not thrilled with the results. Here's what I did and what I'm going to change for next time.

Salmon Jerky
Recipe adapted slightly from here
Ingredients:

• 1 1/4 pounds fresh salmon fillets, skin and bones removed
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 tablespoon molasses
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 teaspoons ground black pepper
• 1 teaspoon liquid smoke (I left this out, but might add it back in next time)

Directions:

1. Place salmon fillets in freezer for 30 minutes (this makes them easier to slice)
2. Mix soy sauce, molasses, lemon juice, pepper and liquid smoke together in a small bowl. Set aside.
3. Remove salmon from the freezer and slice into 1/4 inch thick slices length-wise. Then, slice the lengths in 3-4 inch long pieces.
4. Place salmon in a gallon-sized ziplock bag and pour marinade over salmon. Seal bag and refrigerate 3-4 hours.
5. Strain salmon well in colander. Pat salmon dry with paper towels. Lay salmon slices on dehydrator tray in rows, making sure pieces are not touching.
6. Place trays in dehydrator and cook until salmon is dry and chewy but not crunchy.

The recipe I used said that it should only take 3-4 hours to cook. Ha! It took 13 hours! 

Salmon Jerky

I'm not totally pleased with the final result. It tastes good, but I want it sweeter, more pepper flavored, and chewier. The salmon pieces were way too thick, so next time I'll slice them almost sashimi-thin. I'm going to add brown sugar to the marinade and more pepper and lemon juice. I'm also going to let the salmon marinade overnight. I'll let you know how it turns out!

Update:
Salmon Jerky Take 2

15 Weeks!

This week was mostly spent at home on the couch. As soon as we returned from France, Dan and I both fell ill. He had a cold and I had a sore throat. Neither was very pleasant. At least we were able to curl up by the fire, watch movies and get some rest. I'm still not 100%, but hopefully week 16 will be better.

How far along? 15 weeks

Maternity clothes? Not yet, but my pants are getting kind of tight

Stretch marks? No

Sleep? Terrible this week because of my cold

Best moment of the week: Kissing my wonderful husband at midnight on New Year's Eve

Miss anything? Still runny eggs

Movement: No

Food cravings:  Not really

Anything making you queasy or sick: My stupid cold

Have you started to show yet? Maybe?

Gender: We don't know yet

Belly Button in or out? In, but barely...it's not going to make it much longer

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time? Happy

Looking forward to: Hearing the heartbeat next week!

Happy 2013!

I hope you and your loved ones are enjoying the first day of 2013. Dan made me banana waffles for breakfast, so we're off to a great start.

Last night we brought in the new year in Ripon with some friends. It was such a lovely, low-key evening.

 Celebrating with a non-alcoholic beer; photo courtesy of Nick

Ripon is an old cathedral town. Even today the church plays a large role in the community.  It was really cool to see the whole town come together at the last minute for an evening service at the cathedral and a candle light procession to the town square.

Ripon Cathedral

It started around 11 pm and people just started pouring in from everywhere. By midnight the square was packed. By 12:15, it was empty again. It was a very different experience than I'm used to, but it was really nice.

And there were fireworks!

I hope your New Year's Eve was just as memorable.

Happy New Year!

2012 has been an incredible year for Dan and me. We've seen a lot of the world; celebrated huge birthdays, the Olympics and the Diamond Jubilee; achieved personal fitness and blog milestones; and...oh yeah, found out we were expecting. If 2013 is half as good as 2012 was, we're in for a treat. Happy New Year to my friends, old and new; near and far. I hope this year brings you everything you want and more!

Some of My Top Moments in 2012 (in no particular order):

Trip to Egypt

Dan's 30th Birthday Party

My 30th Birthday

Our Baltic Cruise

Making a Denim Pouf

Running my First 5K

Hosting Thanksgiving

Announcing Our Pregnancy

How to Enjoy Winter

This post is brought to you by Nori, who clearly knows how to make the most of a chilly day.

14 Weeks!

Not much changed for me this week. I do think my belly is getting a little bigger, but outsiders probably still can't see it. No real cravings this week, but something weird did happen. I went to Northern France for a couple of days and was surrounded by the most amazing French foods. In addition to all the croissants, pain au chocolates, macarons, and other pasteries, we also saw tons of Belgian desserts since we were so close to the border. What was weird though is that the baby didn't seem to want as many sweets as I did. I still ate more than my fair share of course, but sometimes I abstained. It just didn't sound appealing. How unlike me is that?!

How far along? 14 weeks

Maternity clothes? Not yet

Stretch marks? No

Sleep? Better now than Dan got me a Snoogle for Chanukah!

Best moment of the week: When Dan saw a dad and his son snuggled up together and he said that would be him someday soon

Miss anything? Soft cheese, wine and beer

Movement: No

Food cravings: None, but weirdly I am NOT craving sweets. It's so unlike me! 

Anything making you queasy or sick: No, thankfully!

Have you started to show yet? Just a wee bit

Gender: We don't know yet

Belly Button in or out? Still in!

Wedding rings on or off? On

Happy or Moody most of the time? Happy 

Looking forward to: Hearing the heartbeat for the first time at our 16 week appointment

Hola, Alicante!

A couple of weeks ago my S.O.S. friends (minus Nick) went on a girls' holiday to Alicante, Spain. I had never heard of this city before, but Ryan Air had cheap flights there, so we figured we'd check it out. After all, it is in the South of Spain...how bad could it be?

Alicante, Spain

This was one of the most relaxed vacations I've ever taken. I was shocked that even with six girls, there was no drama at all. It was so easy and fun. We realized later that it was because we made almost no decisions our entire trip. Ha! We ate our way through the town, frolicked in the Mediterranean, and watched the sun set from a castle. Life is good.

The weather was absolutely fantastic while we were there. Can you believe it was December and the girls were in the water?! Awesome.

We stopped at a little cafe by the water for some refreshments. That's when we first had Cola Cao--a super delicious chocolate powder. We later found a supermarket so we could buy packets to bring home.

On our first day in Alicante we stumbled upon a cute street market. Booths were mostly filled with tacky European clothes, but there were some gems like the vendors selling tapas, beer, and candy. I'm only slightly embarrassed to admit that we visited the candy booth a second time after eating all the candy from our first visit.

Salud!

Photo courtesy of Sarah

Most of our trip was spent eating, as usual. We had some delicious patatas bravas--fried potatoes with a spicy tomato sauce--and some mediocre paella. Rachel and I were really disappointed with our vegetarian version, but the other girls seemed amused by theirs.

Patatas Bravas

Katie may not be as amused

Of course after such a big meal it was time for a little siesta.

We adapted easily to Spanish time. That means that we didn't eat dinner until after 9pm and didn't leave the house until after 10am. It was glorious.

The next day we did more of the same: eating, lounging and eating some more. We found another great market with lots of local meat, produce and sweets.

We did at least one touristy thing though. We went to the top of the Castle of Santa Barbara. It offered spectacular views of the city. Don't you love the combination of mountains and sea?

Our last night in Alicante was one I hope I'll always remember. We spent the night jumping from tapas bar to tapas bar. We ate churros dipped in chocolate, more patatas bravas, fried fish cakes, and more. Everything was delicious and so cheap! I hear the sangria wasn't so bad either.

Photo courtesy Sarah

Laughing so hard we're crying; Photo courtesy Sarah

We managed to sneak in a little bit more beach time before we had to catch our flight.

It was such a fantastic trip! Good food, good friends and good times!