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Lay the salmon skin side down in a non-metal dish and rub the salt evenly over the flesh, a little more on the thick end. Cover and refrigerate for 12 hours, or up to 24 for a firmer, saltier fish.

Rinse off the salt, pat dry and leave uncovered on a rack in the fridge for 2–4 hours, until the surface is dry and slightly tacky.2–4 h

Lay a bed of birch twigs on the smoker grate, like the book's rack, and put the salmon on it, skin side down.

Hot-smoke: start at 50–60 °C for 30 minutes so the surface dries and takes the smoke, then raise the heat to 70–80 °C and smoke until the thickest part reaches 63 °C, about 1–1½ hours more. Check it often, as the book says: it is ready when it feels soft and the flesh just flakes.30 min1–1½ h

Serve warm or cold. Cool it quickly, keep it in the fridge and eat within 4 days.

Cold-smoked instead (our addition): freeze the salmon at −20 °C for at least 24 hours and thaw it in the fridge. Cure it for 24–48 hours with 40–50 g salt per kg, rinse and dry it as in step 2, then cold-smoke below 25 °C for 12–24 hours in all. Rest it in the fridge for a day, slice it thinly and eat within a week, kept below 4 °C.