Use a large bowl and mix the water, salt, and brown sugar. Take a fork and stir it for a few minutes to make sure the solids are dissolved in the water. Add the dill weed and thyme.
Place the salmon filltis on a large cutting board. Using a sharp knife, carefully slice the fish into 2 to 3-inch portions. Leave the skin on. Place the fish in the brine, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 5 hours.
Dry the Fish
After it has marinated, place the fish skin side down on a cooling rack Use a paper towel to gently pat salmon dry. Ideally you should do this where there is a cross-breeze. You can also use a small fan for this purpose. Allow it to dry for a minimum of 2 or 3 hours. This is one of the most important steps! It is critical for a slightly sticky sheen to develop. This is called a pellicle. The pellicle seals the salmon and helps to hold the smoke and it helps keeps the salmon from drying out.Once the fish is dry, apply a liberal dusting of lemon-pepper seasoning and a touch of garlic powder.
How to Smoke Salmon
Place a water pan below the grates of our smoker and fill it with hot water. Then, place salmon on the smoker and start out on low heat at 140-150°. Brush the fish with pure maple syrup every 45 minutes. After a couple of hours, gradually bring the temperature up to 180°. Your target internal temperature is 130-135°.
Notes
If you smoke too high too fast you'll get a fair amount of white stuff called albumin. Some is OK and expected. The less you get, the more moist your fish will be.
Try not to let the piece get above 140°. They start to dry out pretty fast above that.