"First of all, it has an adhesive quality, like glue, allowing the flavor compounds in the smoke to attach firmly rather than simply sliding past."

"Secondly, it acts like armor, locking in the juices of the fish during smoking, preventing the finished product from becoming dry."

"Without this layer, there is no perfect smoke. Forming this protein film on the surface of the ingredient before any smoking is the first step to success and also the most crucial one."

Then, he dug out a good amount of wood chips emitting a moist wood fragrance from the snowpile outside the shelter.

He grabbed a handful of wood chips and showed them to the camera. "Choosing the smoking material is also an art. I’ve prepared mainly willow wood chips with a small amount of birch."

"In the Arctic Region, this is the most accessible smoking fuel. Hardwood smoke has a mild taste, rich in guaiacol and eugenol, bringing a classic smoky flavor."

"Never use wood chips from coniferous trees like spruce or pine, as they are rich in resin, producing a bitter, pungent black smoke when burned, which would ruin the food’s flavor."

"Remember, cold smoking requires smoke ’distilled’ from a slow smolder, not ’burning’ fire."

"So the smoking material must be wet, allowing it to burn slowly and incompletely at high temperatures, distilling the fullest smoke through smoldering and pyrolysis."

With the materials ready, he arrived at the aesthetically pleasing "smoke factory" made from soapstone slabs.

He opened the cover of the furnace, placing a few pieces of last night’s leftover, ember-bearing, fully carbonized hardwood charcoal in the front "burning zone."

He kept the charcoal in a consistently red-hot, high-temperature flameless smoldering state. Then, in the "smoke zone" in the middle of the furnace, he piled a large amount of wet wood chips, almost filling the space.

He closed the cover, leaving only a small gap for observation.

"The principle of this furnace is actually quite simple, it’s dry steaming," Lin Yu’an explained to the camera in more layman’s terms.

"The charcoal in front acts like a red-hot iron, not producing much smoke itself. When its heat flows beneath, it steams these wet wood chips above."

"The moisture and aroma compounds in the wood chips are forced out, forming thick, white smoke. This process, we call it ’pyrolysis,’ produces the purest smoke flavor."

Soon, a highly concentrated white smoke began pouring continuously from the chimney at the end of the stove. This smoke was not hot to the touch, carrying a pure, primal wood aroma.

"Now, it’s time for the cooling and purification phase," Lin Yu’an said, pointing to the snow-made smoke conduit connecting the stove to the smokehouse.

"The smoke just steamed out is still too hot, and it carries some unpleasant-tasting steam and tar. If used directly to smoke the fish, it would taste sour and bitter."

"This two-meter-long snow-made conduit acts like a natural cooling and purification pipe."

"As the scorching smoke passes through it, it exchanges heat with the subzero snow walls, so its temperature drops rapidly."

"Thus, the smoke reaching the smokehouse is cold and clean ’dry smoke.’"

Lin Yu’an crouched down, adjusting the angle of the stone slab at the air intake of the stove to precisely control the charcoal’s burning speed, thereby controlling the smoke’s density and temperature.

After several adjustments, he found a perfect balance, producing the most stable, rich low-temperature smoke.

"Smoke factory, successfully started!" he said with satisfaction.

He threaded several prepared Red Spot Salmon through their gills with sturdy hemp rope, bringing them into the hemispherical snow house smokehouse.

Inside the smokehouse, the light was dim, and the sound of the wind was completely shut out, extremely quiet.

A thick smoke was slowly fanning out from the smoke conduit in one corner of the ground, swirling, gathering, and flowing under the dome as if alive.

The remaining vent slowly let out the smoke, forming a perfect air circulation.

He hung over twenty fish on the pre-set wooden rods, ensuring each fish was suspended equally in the core area of the smoke circulation, allowing the smoke to envelop every corner of the fish’s body.

"Alright, now all we do is wait."

"In the next few hours, I’ll check back every hour. Now, while the weather is nice, it’s not good for December’s growth to always stay inside the shelter."

"I’ve decided to take it out for outdoor activities, let it enjoy the sunlight and the snow."

Lin Yu’an returned to the shelter, where December was rolling around on the wolf skin bed with a red rubber ball, having a great time.

Seeing Lin Yu’an back, it immediately dropped the toy, wobbling over, rubbing its little head against his leg.

"The snow has stopped, the sun is out, do you want to go out and play?" Lin Yu’an crouched down, rubbing its little head.

December seemed to understand the excitement contained within the words "go out and play," letting out a happy "aww" sound, its shiny black eyes filled with anticipation.

Lin Yu’an chuckled; for a Polar Bear cub, the snowfield is its paradise, and the closeness to snow is an instinct ingrained in its genes.

He didn’t put anything on December, for its thick fur was the best insulation. Then he tucked the red rubber ball into his pocket.