Salmon

[Cisco85]

While I like fish one type I've never had is salmon. Any fav recipes ya'll got or advice is strongly appreciated.

 

[Sourdough]

There are Roughly five species of Salmon in Alaska. It is the species of Salmon that you choose that is hundreds of times more important than the recipe.

I advise studying the advantages and disadvantages of each species for human consumption.

While I like fish one type I've never had is salmon. Any fav recipes ya'll got or advice is strongly appreciated.

 

[Mountain trapper]

I grew up fishing for salmon and steelhead. All the streams and rivers around where I grew up were full of them, fished in the ocean a lot for salmon too.
Most of the salmon caught I would smoke. I first made a brine out of salt and let it sit overnight. Then I'd wash the salt off and put the fish in a marinade of honey, brown sugar and maple syrup. Lay the fish out in the smoker and sprinkle red and black pepper over it. I always used alder for salmon. Smoke until done.

Edit: this recipe was also known as Squaw Candy

 

[Cabin Fever]

One piece of advice is to not buy farm-raised salmon. I prefer wild-caught Chinook and Sockeye.

 

[Tim Horton]

In the far great white north we had neighbors that were salmon fishing fanatics.. They fished the river 1000 kilometers up river from the harbor in Richmond, Vancouver and several big lakes in the area.. They made a wonderful flavored home smoked salmon that was more a shoe leather jerky..

The fisherman cafe on the wharf by the cannery in Richmond, Vancouver had the most wonderful smoked salmon eggs benedict.. And coffee that would float an anchor..

I do make the occasional meal of canned salmon patties.. The trick I have found works best is to use finely crushed Ritz crackers, egg, black pepper in the mix..

 

[sonya123]

I buy fresh salmon at Aldi and it works fine for this and is not very expensive

marinate the salmon overnight in lemonade ( I buy that at Aldi also)

smoke it for about an hour

Sushi:
cook sushi rice, add some seasoned rice vinegar while it is still hot and put it on a cookie sheet to cool in fridge
cool salmon also
cut up a avocado and a english cucumber in small strips
brown some panco bread crumbs in olive oil , cool
make spicy mayo by mixing mayo and siracha sauce

assemble sushi rolls
cut seaweed sheet in half, put on plastic wrap
add a thin layer of rice and smash it a little
add another sheet of plastic wrap and flip it
take off bottom wrap
put mayo on sheet
add slices of the salmon ( not the skin) , avocado and cucumber
roll by using a sushi matt or a kitchen towel , I use a kitchen towel

you need a VERY good and sharp knife to cut the rolls, sprinkle with the panco crumbs
serve with wasabi , soy sauce and pickled ginger

 

[Mountain trapper]

One of my favorites for grilling salmon filets is to coat it first with dry Italian dressing mix. Let it sit for a few hours then grill it over hot coals.

 

[Magus]

Broil it until it falls off the bone
add one minced onion for every pound.
a tablespoon of ground chili peppers per pound
1 cup of white cornmeal, 1/4 cup of Bisquick
4 eggs
Mix well and fry in bacon grease until crispy.


2 cups of cooked salmon.
2 tablespoons of sweet relish.
1 tablespoon of jalapeno relish.
1/4 cup of minced onion.
1/4 block of softened cream cheese.
a dash of bacon bits.
add mayo until it spreads easily

 

[Cabin Fever]

When cooking, if you fry/sear the skin until it's crispy, it is great to eat.

Personally, I have enjoyed eating canned red salmon right out of the can with a fork. I enjoy the crunchy bone pieces.

 

[Sourdough]

Alaskans would not feed "Pink Salmon" to their neighbors super aggressive, junkyard dog.

 

[elkhound]

#1 for salmon smoking and cooking....alder wood....!!

 

[Alaskajohn]

As others have mentioned, it’s crucial to start with the right salmon. I only eat sockeye (red), Chinook (king) or Coho (silver) and only wild caught. It’s hard to beat wild caught Copper River Reds for taste and abundant healthy fats, IMHO. A lot of what is sold in the lower 48 is farmed or pink salmon. Stay away from these as they can range from bad to horrible.

I typically like to grill mine being careful not to overcook it. My go to is a simple rub with lime and cilantro. Use light olive oil to rub on the fish, rub in your rub, wait 30 minutes and grill. Don’t squeeze the lime on until just a few minutes before grilling. I am always experimenting with different rubs. A go to is a Cajun seasoning rub if you like a bit of spice.

It’s hard to recommend a single recipe as your taste buds might be different than mine. I have made almost all from the below and all were good.

https://www.allrecipes.com/gallery/best-salmon-recipes/

 

[Mountain trapper]

My preferred salmon is also Coho, Chinook and Sockeye. Sometimes it's hard to find good fresh salmon in the lower 48, outside of Oregon and Washington coast. A couple weeks ago I had to buy, gulp Atlantic salmon! It was just ok. These are hard times we're living in. Next year I'll have my drift boat and I'll start salmon and steelhead fishing again.

 

[Haertig]

It’s hard to beat wild caught Copper River Reds for taste

Agreed 100%! I was going to mention Copper River. Unfortunately, we rarely see it down here in Colorado. And when we do it's only available for a very brief period (maybe two weeks). When you can find if, it's a good 3x the cost of other salmon down here. But we'll buy it every time we see it anyway! Wow, that is good salmon. I haven't seen any for a couple of years though.

I cook salmon outside on the grill. I make a little tin foil boat to set it in. The rolled up sides of the foil contain the oil that cooks out of the salmon and fries the bottom of the fish and makes the outer thinner edges crispy. I do not flip it on the grill. Be careful getting it off the grill in it's little boat. That oil is popping and splattering and will get you. If you're prepared for that, no big deal. But if not, you might drop your fish in surprise if hot grease hits your skin.

 

[Mountain trapper]

Sometimes I like cooking salmon on a cedar board on the grill too. Just some butter and a little lemon and pepper seasoning.

 

[Jen]

While I like fish one type I've never had is salmon. Any fav recipes ya'll got or advice is strongly appreciated.

The best salmon is from the Pacific, not Atlantic (imo) and Alaskan salmon is the very best. When you have salmon (true for any fish though) avoid farmed. Farmed fish is full of toxins.

We lived in Alaska and I had fresh caught salmon at my neighbor's house. That was really the best. But you can get good salmon in many places. It is a delightful fish.

 

[Jen]

Sometimes I like cooking salmon on a cedar board on the grill too. Just some butter and a little lemon and pepper seasoning.

Grilled salmon is wonderful. And yes. butter and fresh lemon and pepper is all that's needed.

I baked salmon once and in addition to the lemon, butter, and pepper I put a little fresh pico de gallo on top while it baked. That, too, was just great.

 

[Jen]

I buy fresh salmon at Aldi and it works fine for this and is not very expensive

marinate the salmon overnight in lemonade ( I buy that at Aldi also)

smoke it for about an hour

Sushi:
cook sushi rice, add some seasoned rice vinegar while it is still hot and put it on a cookie sheet to cool in fridge
cool salmon also
cut up a avocado and a english cucumber in small strips
brown some panco bread crumbs in olive oil , cool
make spicy mayo by mixing mayo and siracha sauce

assemble sushi rolls
cut seaweed sheet in half, put on plastic wrap
add a thin layer of rice and smash it a little
add another sheet of plastic wrap and flip it
take off bottom wrap
put mayo on sheet
add slices of the salmon ( not the skin) , avocado and cucumber
roll by using a sushi matt or a kitchen towel , I use a kitchen towel

you need a VERY good and sharp knife to cut the rolls, sprinkle with the panco crumbs
serve with wasabi , soy sauce and pickled ginger

Salmon sushi is the only sushi I like. I don't make it myself though.

 

[Binky]

While I like fish one type I've never had is salmon. Any fav recipes ya'll got or advice is strongly appreciated.

While I like fish one type I've never had is salmon. Any fav recipes ya'll got or advice is strongly appreciated.

You've gotten good advice from everyone so I thought I'd just throw in some trivia for you about the 9 most common species of salmon as well as tell you how I prepare and cook it. The following link has information about each salmon species and has also included info about Steelhead trout. There is also a picture chart from the Smithsonian Institute there showing what the males of each species looks like during their mating/spawning seasons.

https://ocean.si.edu/ocean-life/fish/complicated-tale-salmon-and-trout

I actually prefer the Pacific Pink salmon (I grew up calling them Humpies here) over all other species of salmon because of its light delicate flavour and texture. I also love Steelhead trout for the same reason, although it has a slightly more robust flavour than Pink salmon does it doesn't taste like salmon, it tastes like trout. The one type of salmon I don't like is Atlantic salmon because it has the highest fat content of all other species of salmon and it makes the meat more greasy than my palate and stomach wants to deal with.

So the way I prefer to prepare the fish is to steam-bake it. I'll take a whole fish, remove the innards, the head, tail fan and all other fins, and under cold running water use a stiff wire bristle brush to quickly scrub off all the scales. The skin when it's cooked, especially if it's cooked crispy, is very good and it's nutritious.

Then I butterfly the fish leaving the bones in place, spread it out skin down, flesh side up on a large sheet of lightly oiled aluminum foil on a baking tray. Sprinkle some seasoned salt and dried sweet crumbled herbs onto the flesh (tarragon, lemon balm or bee balm leaves are nice), rub all that into the flesh a bit. Then I spread a very thin layer of mashed up kiwi fruit, or crushed local pink huckleberry preserves, or crushed yellow plum or strawberry preserves onto the flesh. If I don't want to use fruit I often like to spread hollandaise sauce on the flesh instead. Some people prefer to use ketchup or BBQ sauce or whatever else strikes their fancy onto it.

When that's done I bring the side edges of the aluminum foil over top of the fish and fold and pinch the edges together to seal it tight enough that steam and juices won't escape out of the foil while the fish is cooking.

I bake it in the oven at 350 degrees until I can smell everything cooking then I open up the top seal of the aluminum wide enough to allow all steam out. Poke it with a fork or knife to see how tender it is, leave the aluminum open and pop it back into the oven for just a few minutes, maybe 5 to 10 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish. I don't want it to dry out.

Once it's done, as soon as I take it out of the oven while it's still hot I lift the spine and all the attached bones up and out of the meat. It lifts out effortlessly. There might be a few small bones left in the meat but they're easy to find.

Then I eat my fill.

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