Snowy Morrison's Hot Smoked Salmon

Ben O'Donoghue's *Snowy Morrison's Hot Smoked Salmon*

For chef and television presenter Ben O'Donoghue, cooking is a passion and a reflex. It's something he's done since childhood and it never ceases to give him pleasure or stimulate his imagination. He unequivocally believes that food should be simple and distinctive, technically and culturally correct.

Ben is now living back in Australia after 13 years in the UK. He has just finished filming the brand new series of 'The Best in Australia'. The second eight-part, hour long series, based on the hit BBC series, 'The Best', is currently screening on The LifeStyle Channel. Ben was one of the chefs in the original series of 'The Best', which produced an accompanying book of the same name. His television credits also include four series of the internationally acclaimed food and travel program, 'Surfing the Menu', a journey to source and cook with the finest, freshest ingredients from all over Australia and New Zealand. The popular series screens in Australia and the UK and has also been sold to over 30 other territories. He was the food judge for LifeStyle FOOD's recent 'Great BBQ Challenge' series; and has also appeared on BBC's 'Saturday Kitchen' and 'Planet Food'.

Ben's new cookbook with Hardie Grant Books, 'Outdoor: Grill Your Way Round the World' , has just been released. In his spare time, Ben enjoys surfing, fly-fishing and playing with his three children.

Ingredients

200g Thick salmon fillets, bones removed but skin left on
1tbs Dark rum
SNOWY SECRET RUB
1tbs Soft brown sugar
1tbs Cajun spice
1tbs Salt flakes
1tbs Tomato sauce
1tbs Low-salt soy sauce

Method
1.To make the secret rub, combine the brown sugar, Cajun spice and salt, then mix in the tomato sauce and soy sauce
2. Wash the salmon with the rum and leave to marinate for 30 minutes
3. Massage in the secret rub and leave to marinate in the refrigerator for 2 hours
4. Remove the salmon from the refrigerator and allow it to come to room temperature
5. Prepare a kettle barbecue for indirect cooking, building a small coal fire on both sides of the grill and allowing it to burn quite low until almost out
6. Add 2 handfuls of pre-soaked woodchips to both sides and allow them to start smoking well, with the lid on (temperature should be around 80-100°C)
7. Place the salmon on the grill, away from the heat source. Replace the lid and smoke for 40 minutes. Do NOT lift the lid because if you're looking, you're not cooking
8. Check the fish after 40 minutes, when it should be just cooked, and remove from the barbeque and allow it to rest before serving

*Tom Riley's Wine Suggestion: *Perfectly matched with Penfolds Koonunga Hill Chardonnay