Copper River Salmon

[girl chow]

The Copper River Salmon season opens Monday with an opener that should bring fish into the Seattle grocery stores by Wednesday (at least that's what the seafood folks at Larry's are saying).

Not sure about prices yet. One guy told me excpect $25 a pound for King and maybe $16 to $18 for sockeye, but those would be early market prices, which are always higher.

As we've done in past threads, please post the price of salmon as you see it in the market

Also, let us know how you're going to cook it. When I get my first piece next week, I'm thinking I'll be grilling it with just a squeeze of lemon (my usual m.o.) doesn't need a lot of help, really.

Here's a site that isn't updated yet, but generally is a good source of info about the opener and the CR salmon runs. I expect they'll update it very soon.

[Really Nice!]

The Copper River Salmon season opens Monday with an opener that should bring fish into the Seattle grocery stores by Wednesday (at least that's what the seafood folks at Larry's are saying).

I just came back from a stroll in the market and the signs are saying they'll have it on Tuesday, no price indicated yet.

[vengroff]

Wow, $25/lb.? I'm pretty sure I've paid less than that for Copper River King at Wild Edibles in NYC, and they are not exactly known for their low prices.

I don't suppose there are any other rivers with less of a brand name that produce wild Salmon of comparable quality--or are there?

[phaelon56]

I've never tried CRS but may do so this year. One of the owners at a local espresso joint where I stop a few mornings each week knows of my interest in all things food and drink related. A few weeks ago he gave me a heads up about the recent availability of line caught wild Pacific Salmon and the soon to be available CRS. This guy is a 'fishetarian' if ever there was one. He lived in Alaska for twenty years and eats very little meat but plenty of fish. He gave me a quick tutorial on why line caught fish is often better than net caught fish (has to do with the balance of muscle and fat in the flesh - along the lines of marbling in beef). It's his contention that CRS is at the optimal point where the ideal balance of fat and muscle exists to offer the most desirable eating characteristics.

Being the thrifty sort that I am.... I questioned if it was really worth $20 per pound or more. His response was simple: it's not about the price - it's about the fact that it's really good eating fish.

I see this as a "point of diminishing returns" issue for which there is now concrete answer and no right or wrong. Does $20 - $25 per pound CRS taste 4X better than some other salmon I can get on sale for $5 - 6 per pound? Probably not but it's a goofy question to begin with. It's all about supply and demand.

I'm a coffee freak and really enjoy a cup of Jamaican Blue Mountain on occasion. Even buying the beans in green form and roasting them myself I can still expect to pay $20 per pound. In pre-roasted form they're $30 for the real thing (much of the Jamaican Blue Mountain one can buy on the open market is not the real thing). I really enjoy JMB but am the first to admit that it's not worth the price in relative terms. I can get Indonesian, African, Central American and other coffees for far less money that are just as good in most respects and perhaps better in some. JMB, however, is perhaps the best balanced cup of coffee I've ever had when it's a good one. I don't think about the price - I just enjoy it for what it is and accept the fact that the price is high due to supply and demand.

Perhaps someone here knows of a link they can point us to that offers specific information on line caught fish in general and CRS in particular?

[ExtraMSG]

By the end of the season last year, I was paying less than $10/lb consistently. $25/lb probably isn't ridiculous when you consider how much demand there will be early on and the fact that you'll probably be getting ultra fresh stuff that hasn't sat around at all. What's amazing is that people in NY will probably be paying $30+ for 6 ozs of stuff that's been sitting on a block of ice for days and days at a restaurant.

[Stupid_American]

...... consider how much demand there will be early on and the fact that you'll probably be getting ultra fresh stuff that hasn't sat around at all.

I think we may have hit upon something here.

Except for Josephson's smoked delights, I haven't bought salmon for better than 30 years.

I satisfy my salmon jones when I'm in Oregon.

Then, we just about eat ourselves sick on the stuff my buddy brings home (usually the extremely rich whites).

And that stuff is never over 3 hours off the boat!

Maybe it's not their genetics.

Maybe it's not the special diet they enjoy over lesser salmon!

Maybe, with all the CRS fanfare and hoopla, the demand created results in the freshest salmon most people will come across.

[foodie52]

Everything's relative, isn't it? Some people spend 25 to 30 bucks for a night out at the movies....tickets, popcorn, drinks, sitter. Others spend $25 for a chunk of salmon that will afford them great, albeit brief, pleasure. Same difference, don't you think?

[rlibkind]

Everything's relative, isn't it? Some people spend 25 to 30 bucks for a night out at the movies....tickets, popcorn, drinks, sitter. Others spend $25 for a chunk of salmon that will afford them great, albeit brief, pleasure. Same difference, don't you think?

That's what makes the world go round.

[lala]

Sometimes I make a plan to spend a day sipping on a bottle of spendy champagne while watching movies... I consider that worth the money. It just depends on what you consider a worthwhile treat. I'm not a huge salmon fan, so I hope that someone else enjoys my allotment of Copper River Fishies.

I DID notice that Dungies have gone up in price...

[mamster]

White salmon is sold all over in Seattle. I see it regularly at Whole Foods and University Seafood and Poultry.

[Stupid_American]

In So.California, it's been noted that Whole Foods is already selling "Copper River Salmon"!

Don't know any buyers buying whites.

Probably farm raised without being dyed.

Have you tried it?

How's it priced compared to "regular" salmon?

Edited May 17, 2004 by Stupid_American (log)

[mklynch]

I saw "copper river" salmon in a store a few weeks back for about $7 a pound. Thought there was something FISHY going on and found out it had been frozen LAST YEAR!

I knew there was a reason I never buy fish at that store.

[mamster]

The white salmon I've seen around is priced comparably to troll-caught king salmon, because that (as far as I know) is what it is. We have fairly sophisticated consumers here, many of whom will not dismiss white salmon as a pale imitation. I've had it and doubt I could tell the difference from wild king if I were blindfolded.

[Foodie-Girl]

Mamster, I'm fairly unsophisticated as far as salmon goes but I have to say that I had white salmon once, at Oceanaire and to me it tasted more like trout than salmon.

[girl chow]

In So.California, it's been noted that Whole Foods is already selling "Copper River Salmon"!

Well, considering the Copper River Salmon season opened about 3 hours ago, I'm thinking it's a scam.. or year-old frozen fish. Either case, not good.

Or, wait, you know, could you be confusing Copper River salmon with Columbia River salmon? That run of wild salmon has been open and is still open right now.

[Steve Ramsey]

"Copper River Salmon" is basically marketing hype foisted upon the unknowing.

I could put a well handled fillet of chinook down in front of nearly any one of you and you wouldn't know the difference.

You can see the difference before cooking, and I might be inclined to use it for salmon tartare, but other than that?

I suggest that the buyer beware.

Mu guess is that there is more than one guy selling you something else at 20+ bucks a pound.

[Paula Jonvik]

To all on this thread... Wild Salmon is something that is not as plentyful these days due to poaching, overfishing, pollution et cetera.

When you consider the cost of the licences, fishing boats, gear, crew, moorage, transportation et cetera, $25.00 a pound is a steal!

We are all so spoiled! Instant gratification for our over-indugent palates come at a price higher than that quoted for CRS!

One day there won't be any Salmon, fresh or otherwise, so enjoy it while you can... Your children will be lucky if they even have salmon when they are our age...

[BastilaShan]

There is also the Yukon river salmon which is supposed to contain more fat than the Copper river salmon as the Yukon river is longer in length and the fish have to store more fat.

However, it seems almost impossible to get the Yukon river salmon...

[LEdlund]

There is also the Yukon river salmon which is supposed to contain more fat than the Copper river salmon as the Yukon river is longer in length and the fish have to store more fat.

I've heard the same thing about Fraser River salmon. Not that I've seen that in stores either.

[lala]

Does anyone know the fat content of various salmon? I was trying to find this online, and came up with a blank.

[ExtraMSG]

http://www.nutritiondata.com has the data by species and farm vs wild:

http://www.nutritiondata.com/foods-salmon0...0000000000.html

[lala]

Thanks...now what about the controversial (on this board, anyway!) Copper River?

[BastilaShan]

I remembered seeing the fat content of the various salmon species online together with the rivers where they are caught. The Yukon river salmon has the highest content followed by the Copper river salmon. Both of them have much higher fat than regular wild salmon.

Speaking of salmon, what are some good places to buy salmon in the Seattle area?

Thanks!

[girl chow]

Speaking of salmon, what are some good places to buy salmon in the Seattle area?

Thanks!

I think we can all agree here that Mutual Fishis one of our top picks for quality seafood (see shrimp thread going on right now). They're just north of Columbia City on Rainier Ave. S. (just south of the ID).

Also, I'm a Larry's girl (when I'm in the hood) and I really think the fish counter help at any Metropolitan Market is always pretty good.

If you tell us what neighborhood in Seattle you'll be looking, we could probably find more places where you can find salmon closer to you.

Or, wait, were you asking where to buy actual salmon, or could you possibly mean good restaurants where you can order salmon as an entree?

[ScorchedPalate]

We've bought our CRS at Central Market in the past, and were very happy with the price and the quality. We'll probably head to Mutual Fish this year, now that we're closer.

~A