Copper River Salmon

[Schielke]

Whole Foods always has very high quality fish and is usually priced quite competitively.

[thelastsupper]

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?

And Mutual may be one good place to find Yukon River Salmon . . . It's listed on the website anyway. Wonder about the price . . .?

My apologies Anita.

[LEdlund]

Costco has had whole CRS in the past, haven't heard if they will have it this year.

[little ms foodie]

Whole Foods in Ravenna told me today that it will be around $24.99 a pound and there wasn't that much of it this year. What do you think that means? Just a way to hype the price perhaps? My husband will be very cranky if we aren't grilling CRS this weekend!

[Fish]

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.

You need to try the white salmon carpaccio appetizer at Nishino - it's an amazing dish, and the fish is unlike any salmon I've had before. Yum !

And yes, I buy CRS - it definitely tastes better. However, I'll probably wait a few days until the first crazy rush is over.

- S

(edited to remove redundant information)

Edited May 18, 2004 by Fish (log)

[Stupid_American]

We all know that salmon return to the river of their birth.

I don't remember ever hearing a definitive explaination as to how they do this.

We've had a couple posts stating that the difference with CRS is that they are richer, "fattier".

This is because the Copper River is so long and they need the extra fat for their extra long journey home.

I think we can now conclude that salmon return to the birthplace using memory; no smell, no GPS, simply memory.

How else would they know how much food to eat for the trip?

[lala]

There have got to be hundreds of sources on the web that tell how salmon know how to go home.

It is genetics, smell, and memory combined. Just as a human baby gets to know it's mother in the womb, the salmon has it's place of birth imprinted in it's brain. Before hatcheries, this was easier, as the salmon was more genetically coded from the wild salmon parents. As well, the eggs dropped in the gravel stream beds pick up memory as they grow, as opposed to being bred in tanks. The also pick up sensory memories from the journey down the river to the sea, so they have known markers for the journey back. It's quite amazing, really.

Problem is, since many of these fish are actually now caught in the ocean by commercial nets, they never make it back to the stream to lay the eggs, cutting another generation out of the loop, and threatening the true, wild salmon.

I'm reading The Good Rain by Timothy Egan right now and here's a quote so that you have an idea of what salmon mean around here:

" When you pull a fish like a king salmon out of the water, it overwhelms you: the size, the fight, the color, the connections between a landbound two-legger and a sea-touring giant. An outsider has trouble understanding this infatuation with salmon. They're just fish, or lox on a bagel. But then you go to a waterfall deep in British Columbia's high country and see leaping sockeyes, worn and battered, with long green snouts, struggling the final miles to their alpine lake. Now you think of them as athletes. You check the elevation, nearly 3,500 feet above sea level in the Chilko River, and they become alpinists. What kind of fish climbs a mountain? A Pacific salmon, of course. And then you slow-cook one in foil over a fire, the meat rich with the oil that provides the sustenance for the long spawning journey, and they are delicacies. The flesh, rosy orange, pulls away from filament-thin bones and needs nothing to enhance the taste."

[Stupid_American]

But it's still amazing that, with all this imput, they can still compute the amount of baggage needed!

[Really Nice!]

Stopped by Pure Foods Fish Market in the market this morning on the way to work. The guy there says they'll have CRS by 10 A.M. today. I asked how much per pound and he shrugged his shoulders and said about $18 to $20 a pound. I suspect it'll be more.

Yes, I'll buy and eat CRS at the same time someone else is eating Mrs. Paul's Fish Sticks. I'll dine at The French Laundry while someone is dining at McDonalds. And I'll drink Lafite Rothschild while someone is drinking Charles Shaw. But then, I too eat Mrs. Paul's Fish Sticks, dine at McDonalds, and drink Charles Shaw... to me it's all a matter of what you want when you want it (food cognition).

[malarkey]

Stopped by Pure Foods Fish Market in the market this morning on the way to work. The guy there says they'll have CRS by 10 A.M. today. I asked how much per pound and he shrugged his shoulders and said about $18 to $20 a pound. I suspect it'll be more.

he might have been talking about Sockeye, rather than King. Did he say?

[Really Nice!]

he might have been talking about Sockeye, rather than King. Did he say?

[beans]

he might have been talking about Sockeye, rather than King. Did he say?

Nope.

Is there a difference?

[Fay Jai]

lala ---

The Good Rain was a welcome hit of home everytime I opened it the year I lived in HK.

I've heard the same about the Yukon Salmon...If anyone sees it for sale, please post it, I would really be grateful.

(Still working on that pic, malarkey. Our computer is FUBAR right now...)

[Adiabatic]

Like most things, I think there's a bit of truth to both sides of the story here. Its true, CRS has a press agent. A few years ago the fishing industry in Cordova decided to market their local salmon. I don't think I had even heard of CRS ten years ago. But as part of that marketing, they instituted quality control standards. So instead of tossing the fish in the bottom of the boat with the bilge water, the fish are iced immediately, etc. etc. And there's no road to Cordova, so everything gets flown out more or less right away, as opposed to driving it to Anchorage first.

But is it really better? Every population of salmon is a little different, so it stands to reason that one population is the tastiest. I don't doubt that CRS compares very well with others. The difference though, can be very subtle. And there different species too. All things being equal if you prefered red, would you order a CR king over a red from somewhere else? I'd be inclined to go for the red, because that's what I like.

And not every fisherman tosses his fish into the bilge water. There's plenty of fine fish to be had from other places, but there is no stamp on the package saying what river the fish came from. You pay a lot for the brand, to be sure.

Still, the CR brand means you'll get a nice piece of fish. That's worth $20/pound to a lot of people. I might be inclined to pick some up myself.

[mb7o]

Larry's (QA) has it, $27.99/lb I believe.

Wild unidentified King at $13.99/lb or so is cooking right now.

I think Larry's is always expensive for salmon. Fred Meyer often has it under $5/lb, don't know if it's a loss leader or from some strange fish farm.

[malarkey]

Tomorrow (the 19th) they are cooking up some CRS in the kiosk at the Met Market on Queen Anne. I think it will probably be from 4-5 to 6-7ish. How's that for specifics LOL

[tighe]

I was at Mutual today picking up some of the fresh shrimp. CR prices as follows:

Chinook filet - $28/lb

Chinook steak - $25/lb

Whole Chinook - $23/lb

Whole Sockeye - $12/lb

Good thing I prefer the sockeye I guess...

[Fishshooter]

The Yukon river opens the first week in june for commercial fishing. The Yukon river is much longer than the Copper river so the fish have to eat more to store more fat to make it to the spawning grounds and add more flavor for our taste buds.

Costco usualy sells whole sockeye copper river for around $4-5 a pound. I generaly pick up a half doz. and put them in my smoker. They are the best.

I hope to pick up some Yukons this year also and try them in the smoke.

[Really Nice!]

Stopped by Pure Foods Fish Market in the market this morning on the way to work. The guy there says they'll have CRS by 10 A.M. today. I asked how much per pound and he shrugged his shoulders and said about $18 to $20 a pound.  I suspect it'll be more.

he might have been talking about Sockeye, rather than King. Did he say?

Stopped in this morning on my way to work. All they have at the moment is King, $27.99 a pound.

[ScorchedPalate]

Whoa.. I hope the prices come down by the weekend.

~A

[girl chow]

I'm hoping that prices go down too. I'm going out later today to do some comparison shopping. I'll post my research later.

[docsconz]

Got an e-mail from Pike Place Market advertizing fresh, new CRS fillets at $34/lb and whole fish for $26/lb. This is a little too steep for me, especially with shipping on top of that. I have ordered a whole CRS for each of the past 2 years, but unless the price drops significantly, I think I'll stand on the sidelines this year.

[Really Nice!]

I'm hoping that prices go down too. I'm going out later today to do some comparison shopping. I'll post my research later.

I'm hoping they come down too especially when you ask for half a pound and he puts 3/4 pound on the scale and starts to wrap it up. I told him that I asked for half a pound and he just shrugged his shoulders.

I should have walked away, dang it!

Anyway, I went to Franks and bought some fennel. I'll caramelize it to sweeten it a bit and serve it as a side. I'll pan roast the salmon with a little dill, lemon oil, freshly cracked pepper and maybe some Hawaiian sea salt.

I'm thinking cat wee will go well with this so I'll serve it with a bottle of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc.

[lleechef]

Here in Anchorage the king fillets are $19.99/lb. and the red fillets are $14.99/lb. Most of us catch enough of our own salmon during the course of the summer that the first run of fish at this price is not very tempting.

[BastilaShan]

Since the CR salmon is so fresh, is it possible to just buy it as a fillet and eat it raw, sushi/sashimi style?