Lemon and Dill Smoked Salmon

We take a whole side of salmon, brine it in lemon and dill, smoke it in a kamado grill and then top the smoked salmon with an iconic creamy dill sauce making this dish a huge crowd pleaser. This grilled salmon being loaded with that good kind of fat, makes it much harder to dry out. Trust me. I know all about the good kind of fat. I’m a good kind of fat guy! 

We absolutely love salmon at GrillinFools.com. We try to take a charter every year on Lake Michigan on our family vacation to stock up on as much fresh salmon as we can. And we cook it all sorts of different ways

• From Dijon Dill, Planked Salmon
• To Coffee Rubbed, Grilled Salmon (that coffee rub is money!)
• To Orange, Whiskey Marinated Salmon
• And finally, Salmon Tacos with Semi Fresh Salsa (the salsa hack is worth the click)
• We even have Air Fryer Salmon on our sister site CookinFools.com where we have all sorts of recipes of stuff cooked inside. 
• Actually, there are more salmon recipes. 

Lemon and Dill Smoked Salmon with Creamy Dill Dip Ingredients

Salmon Brine

• 1 (2 1/2 pound) salmon fillet, bottom skin on
• 1/2 cup light brown sugar
• 1/2 cup loosely packed dill and tender stems, chopped
• 1 green onion, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon freshly grated red or black peppercorns
• Zest from 1 lemon

Creamy Dill Sauce

• 1/3 cup mayonnaise
• 1/3 cup plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons minced dill
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• Zest from one lemon
• Pinch of salt

Brining Instructions for the Salmon

To Prepare Salmon: Lay the salmon filet, skin side down, on a sheet of parchment paper, in a rimmed baking pan. Combine brown sugar, dill, green onion, salt, pepper, and lemon zest, and evenly pat over salmon. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for at least 8 hours.

Note: At the end of brining there is a lot of excess liquid.

To Prepare Creamy Dill Sauce: Combine mayonnaise, yogurt, dill, Dijon, lemon zest, and a pinch of salt. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

The morning after the salmon has brined, pour the juices off the salmon and discard. Pat the salmon dry. Place the salmon on a new sheet of parchment paper and place on a rimmed baking pan. Use kitchen shears to cut the parchment in the same shape of the salmon.

Lemon and Dill Smoked Salmon Cooking Instructions

Light a load of charcoal, leaving the lid open and waiting 10-12 minutes for the charcoal to build a small bed of embers. We are going for a low fire here. Like sub 200°F. We are going for closer to cold smoking here. Not quite cold. sub 200°F is still pretty hot, but you get the idea. So make sure you grill seals really well or you can get a pellet cooker down to 190°F

Once the temperature is 190°F, drop in a chunk of smoke wood. We suggest one of the following: apple, maple, cherry, peach, pear or apricot.

Place the pan with salmon on a plate setter in the center of the kamado (or your preferred grill type):

If using a traditional charcoal grill, place the coals to one side of the grill with the smoke wood and the salmon on the other side for two-zone or indirect grilling. 

Close the lid and set the timer for 45 minutes. Turn the fish pan 180 degrees once during the first 45 minutes to ensure even cooking:

After 45 minutes, check the internal temperature of the salmon. The ideal temperature for smoked salmon is 140°F. If the salmon is below 140°F cook at 10 minute intervals until ideal temperature has been reached.

Remove salmon from grill. Allow the salmon to sit for 10 minutes to allow temperature to reach 145°F from the residual heat. Remove salmon from pan when it reaches 145°F.

Smoked salmon can be served warm but we usually serve this chilled or at room temperature. Garnish with dill sprigs and lemon slices.

Lemon and Dill Smoked Salmon Summary

This is the iconic salmon dish that hits hard. It’s one of those bites that you get a taste of and are not going to be satisfied until you get done with thirds and seriously debate whether or not to go for fourths.

If you love what Merry did with this smoked salmon recipe, you can find all sorts of recipes she has done (and not just BBQ) on her website. Plus, any questions or comments? Feel free to leave them below or send Merry an email. 

Also, if you could leave us a great review with lots of stars ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ that would be most appreciated!

Additionally, you can follow us on our GrillinFools Facebook page, Instagram, and YouTube feeds

Recipe Card

Print Recipe

Lemon and Dill Smoked Salmon

A whole side of salmon, brined in lemon and dill, smoked in a kamado grill and then topped the smoked salmon with an iconic creamy dill sauce

Prep Time20 minutes mins

Cook Time1 hour hr

Brine Time8 hours hrs

Course: Entree, Fish, Main Course, Salmon, Seafood

Cuisine: American, American Fare, Fish, Seafood

Keyword: Brine, Brined, Brined Salmon, Cold Smoke, Kamado, Kamado Grill, Lemon and Dill, Smoked Salmon

Ingredients

Salmon Brine Ingredients

• 2.5 pound Side of salmon, skin on
• ½ cup Light brown sugar
• ½ cup Loosely packed dill and tender stems, chopped
• 1 Green onion, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoon Kosher salt
• ½ teaspoon Fresh grated red or black peppercorn
• Zest of one lemon

Creamy Dill Dip

• ⅓ cup Mayonnaise
• ⅓ cup Plain yogurt
• 2 tablespoons Fresh dill, minced
• 3 tablespoons Dijon mustard
• Zest of one lemon
• Pinch of salt

Instructions

Salmon Brine Instructions

• To Prepare Salmon: Lay the salmon filet, skin side down, on a sheet of parchment paper, in a rimmed baking pan. Combine brown sugar, dill, green onion, salt, pepper, and lemon zest, and evenly pat over salmon. Cover and refrigerate overnight or for at least 8 hours. Note: At the end of brining, there is a lot of excess liquid.

Creamy Dill Sauce Instructions

• To Prepare Creamy Dill Sauce: Combine mayonnaise, yogurt, dill, Dijon, lemon zest, and a pinch of salt. Cover and refrigerate until ready to serve.

How to Cook the Smoked Salmon

• The morning after the salmon has brined, pour the juices off the salmon and discard. Pat the salmon dry. Place the salmon on a new sheet of parchment paper and place it on a rimmed baking pan. Use kitchen shears to cut the parchment in the same shape of the salmon.
• Light a load of charcoal, leaving the lid open and waiting 10-12 minutes for the charcoal to build a small bed of embers. We are going for a low fire here. Like sub 200°F. We are going for closer to cold smoking here. Not quite cold. sub 200°F is still pretty hot, but you get the idea. So make sure your grill seals really well or you can get a pellet cooker down to 190°F
• Once the temperature is 190°F, drop in a chunk of smoke wood. We suggest one of the following: apple, maple, cherry, peach, pear or apricot.
• Place the pan with salmon on a plate setter in the center of the kamado (or your preferred grill type)
• If using a traditional charcoal grill, place the coals to one side of the grill with the smoke wood and the salmon on the other side for two-zone or indirect grilling. 
• Close the lid and set the timer for 45 minutes. Turn the fish pan 180 degrees one time during the first 45 minutes to ensure even cooking:
• After 45 minutes, check the internal temperature of the salmon. The ideal temperature for smoked salmon is 140°F. If the salmon is below 140°F cook at 10 minute intervals until ideal temperature has been reached.
• Remove salmon from grill. Allow the salmon to sit for 10 minutes to allow temperature to reach 145°F from the residual heat. Remove salmon from pan when it reaches 145°F.
• Smoked salmon can be served warm but we usually serve this chilled or at room temperature. Garnish with dill sprigs and lemon slices.

Bonus Pics:

Merry Graham

Merry Graham is a Southern California award-winning competitive cook, home cook, recipe developer, food photographer, and brand ambassador. She is a mother of 4, grandma to 5 and an all-around foodie; named the Healthiest Cook In America by Bobby Flay in 2012! She is well respected in the cooking competition world, winning more contests than she can count while cashing in on over $150,000 in checks and prizes.

Merry has appeared on Food Network's Clash of the Grandmas and as a top 3 finalist on The Rachael Ray Show Great American Cookbook Competition. She has consecutively competed and placed in the top ten in the sandwich category in the nation's elite cooking competition, World Food Championships. As a competitor, her culinary trips have taken her to Scotland, the Philippines, Cancun, Panama, and several US states.

“A Merry Recipe” has been her main outlet of social media where her tasty and eye-appealing dishes are enjoyed by thousands. What ignites her now is “Grilling Grandma”, her latest adventure on social media where she shows off creative and unique smoke and grill recipes. Have you seen her Grill Baked Sourdough Boule with Smoked Garlic Herb Butter?

Merry shows no signs of slowing down. She swims regularly, and travels with her husband of 44-years. She loves connecting with other Foodies through social media and has become a member of a team of live-fire cooking called Social Feasts. As part of the Social Feasts live-fire influencers, she has plenty of opportunities to develop recipes for smoke and grill meats along with photographing social media content. Anyone who knows Merry will tell you SHE brings the FLAVOR that gives life to a party!

See Full Bio

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This article was initially published on: July 31, 2026