The choice determines the texture, flavor, and potential uses of the fish. In this temperature range, the fish is not cooked, just dried a little further and infused with smoke flavor, so it remains especially moist and tender. Lightly cured, tender, and moist, it can be sliced thin without breaking apart. Sturgeon also takes beautifully to the cold-smoke treatment. This is the kind of smoked fish produced by most home-sized smokers.
Many types of fish can be hot-smoked.
The golden-colored whole smoked whitefish sold in delis also fall into this category, as do smoked mackerel and bluefish. Cut hot-smoked fish into cubes, chunks, or thick slices, or just flake it apart along the natural seams between the muscles. In this form, the fish is ready to use in salads and other cold dishes, or gently warmed in a pasta sauce. In fact, some of the brightly-colored cured fish sold in supermarkets are not smoked at all, simply flavored with a cure that includes smoke flavoring. In pre-refrigeration days, smoked fish were heavily cured and smoked fairly dry, for storage at room temperature or in a cellar.