Dry Brine or Brine in water

You could write a book on the topic but here are my thoughts:

Wet Brine - Salt Based, used to impart moisture into meat that would otherwise be dry (e.g. Poultry or Pork). Works by osmosis, the cell structure of the meat soaks up the brine giving you more flavor amd moisture. Basic brine ratio one cup kosher salt dissolved in one gallon water. Brine time one hour per pound of meat. (Lots of variations but that's the basics)

Dry Brine - Any rub with salt will draw moisture out of meat so what are you trying to accomplish? A lot of dry brines are actually cures containing sodium nitrite or nitrate (Bacon, Cold Smoked Salmon, etc.). This cures the meat giving it a characteristic "Hammy" Flavor, and also kills botchulism spores which might be present during cold smoking.

There is a lot of information on both out there if you take the time to seek it out.

Have fun!

I use a simple "dry" rub that obviously gets wet after sitting overnight. For this latest recipe I used 1/2 cup kocher sale; 1 cup light brown sugar; 1 heaping tablespoon of fresh ground peppercorns and a tsp of garlic powder.

My salmon filet was about 2-2.5 lbs with skin still on. I put the skin side down in a glass dish and pressed the rub on the top and sides of the fish, covered and put in the frig for about 18 hours. I then pulled it out, lightly rinsed in cold water and set in on the counter with paper towels under for about an hour.

It's in the smoker now at about 180 and is 122 degrees after 2.5 hours. Going to get the internal temp to the mid 130's.