Copper River King Salmon

[Bobby 2 Shakes]

Spawning season for the Legendary Alaskan Copper River Kings is just around the corner. Does anyone know where they'll be available (restaurant or market)?

I have an old Rick Nichols column from May 1998 that I keep forgetting about every year until it's too late. This year I'm determined not to miss the opportunity.

[rlibkind]

For a number of years the only place to get Copper River salmon in Philadelphia was Cutter's, now Twenty21. To the best of my knowledge, they will have it again. But more recently other restaurants, particularly those specializing in fish, have added it to the menu.

Cutter's had CRS because it was owned by a quality restaurant group based in Seattle, which is where I first tasted this fish in 1988 (Ray's Boathouse). No doubt about it, CRS is a wonderful fish, but other populations of king salmon are good, too; what counts more, as far as I'm concerned, is the quality, freshness, and handling of the fish more than the particular population. And some will argue, with much merit, that sockeye is a tastier salmon than king. Me? When I'm not near the salmon I love, I love the one I'm near.

A cooking observation. King salmon takes particularly well to various boozy sauces or marinades. Cutter's grilled theirs with a vermouth garlic sauce; I've indirectly roasted a whole CRS on my Weber kettle after an hour or two's bath in a bourbon mustard marinade. Can't go wrong, either way.

[Rich Pawlak]

For a number of years the only place to get Copper River salmon in Philadelphia was Cutter's, now Twenty21. To the best of my knowledge, they will have it again. But more recently other restaurants, particularly those specializing in fish, have added it to the menu.

Cutter's had CRS because it was owned by a quality restaurant group based in Seattle, which is where I first tasted this fish in 1988 (Ray's Boathouse). No doubt about it, CRS is a wonderful fish, but other populations of king salmon are good, too; what counts more, as far as I'm concerned, is the quality, freshness, and handling of the fish more than the particular population. And some will argue, with much merit, that sockeye is a tastier salmon than king. Me? When I'm not near the salmon I love, I love the one I'm near.

A cooking observation. King salmon takes particularly well to various boozy sauces or marinades. Cutter's grilled theirs with a vermouth garlic sauce; I've indirectly roasted a whole CRS on my Weber kettle after an hour or two's bath in a bourbon mustard marinade. Can't go wrong, either way.

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Ya gotta figure McCormick & Schmick's would carry it.

[rlibkind]

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Ya gotta figure McCormick & Schmick's would carry it.

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Don't know about M&S. Howver, Devon Seafood has had it in the past.

[DTBarton]

Our local Whole Foods in Annapolis usually gets a brief run of Copper River salmon in May.

[Vadouvan]

Unfortunately, Devon Seafood is unbelievably mediocre and a waste of money.

The best way to enjoy copper River Salmon is to order it online and cook it yourself.

Virtually every restaurant overcooks it.

Best way to enjoy it is slow roast, 225 degrees F after a brief Cure.

And that is Copper river KING not Sockeye.

[rlibkind]

Unfortunately, Devon Seafood is unbelievably mediocre and a waste of money.

The best way to enjoy copper River Salmon is to order it online and cook it yourself.

Virtually every restaurant overcooks it.

Best way to enjoy it is slow roast, 225 degrees F after a brief Cure.

And that is Copper river KING not Sockeye.

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You may well be right about Devon; I've never tried it, just knew they had it. Thanks for the warning. I don't know whether you ever had it at Cutter's or Twenty21, but, in the 16 years since I first ordered it there (I've only missed a couple of seasons since, including last year when I was in Petersburg, AK), they cooked it to my order, never overcooked (and I like mine on the rare side).

There is also a Copper River sockeye run, in addition to the king run. In fact, all varieties of salmon have a Copper River run. The largest of the Copper River runs is sockeye, with 1.3 million fish hauled in last year, vs. 34,500 chinook (king). A lot of what people buy as "Copper River Salmon" is, indeed, Copper River salmon, but if it isn't marked as king or chinook, it's probably sockeye. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, since it is a delicious fish, too. It's just a bit different in fat content and flavor.

Your slow roast sounds like an absolutely delicious way to enjoy the salmon, but I'd hesitate to flat out state it's the "best" way. Grilling works, too.

[lancastermike]

There is also a Copper River sockeye run, in addition to the king run. In fact, all varieties of salmon have a Copper River run. The largest of the Copper River runs is sockeye, with 1.3 million fish hauled in last year, vs. 34,500 chinook (king). A lot of what people buy as "Copper River Salmon" is, indeed, Copper River salmon, but if it isn't marked as king or chinook, it's probably sockeye. That isn't necessarily a bad thing, since it is a delicious fish, too. It's just a bit different in fat content and flavor.

Last year I bought some at the Wegmans store in Dowingtown. As to Bob's point above, I have no idea if it was king or sockeye. I do know it was delicious. I grilled it for a short time and served it rare. Deep taste and an almost buttery texture.

[shacke]

Unfortunately, Devon Seafood is unbelievably mediocre and a waste of money.

The best way to enjoy copper River Salmon is to order it online and cook it yourself.

Virtually every restaurant overcooks it.

Best way to enjoy it is slow roast, 225 degrees F after a brief Cure.

And that is Copper river KING not Sockeye.

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What kind of curing do you recommend?

Evan

[lamando]

A simple cure that is easy to do at home.

1/2 sugar

1/2 sea salt

Whole peppercorns

Fennel seed

Fresh thyme

Cure the salmon for about a day.

Make sure you rinse of the cure before you begin cooking.

You can also make a wet brine.

[Vadouvan]

Your slow roast sounds like an absolutely delicious way to enjoy the salmon, but I'd hesitate to flat out state it's the "best" way. Grilling works, too

Bob, I think its the best way for the KING salmon because it allows you to enjoy what you are paying for, the fat content and unctous texture. Nothing wrong with grilling salmon, its quite good but its a completely different texture from slowroasting.

Grilling subjects the surface to high heat which gives that crispy exterior and you get a grade in texture to medium rare, although that crispy crunch is tasty, for me its dry and you are going to have to eat it pretty damn quickly because the heat that it takes to do it right continues to cook it after its off the heat. Grilling is in the range of 400 to 600 degrees depending on grilling medium.

Pre-cured slow roasting however is done at 225 degrees, no more

The initial curing draws out excess moisture and firms up the fish.

Slow roasting then texturises it just to barely flake and then you can really taste the flavor and texture you are paying for........"In my opinion"

I have no idea if it was king or sockeye.

Sockeye will be a really deep red color, has a lower fat content than KING which makes it not nearly as tasty, think of it as Angus VS Wagyu Beef.

King is lighter, bigger fish cross section and fattier.

What kind of curing do you recommend?

Evan

Again in my opinion, lengthy cures and dry spicing ruin the fish for slow roasting.

Mix together.

1/4 cup of Kosher or Maldon salt

1/4 cup Superfine Sugar not powdered 10x......superfine.

The zest of 2 large lemons, removed with a microplane, no other tool.

Rub your boneless salmon filets with this mixture.

About 1 tablespoon for every 8 oz of fish.

Top with one fresh bay leaf and wrap tight in plastic.

Refrigerate for 2hrs max.

Rinse of fish, dry well with lint free cotton or food grade paper towel.

Rub lightly with high quality EVOO.

Bake in a 225 degree oven till it just flakes and no white liquid (coagulated proteins) are oozing out of it yet.

Works great with Char,Ocean Trout, Mackrel, hamachi.

Cheers.

Edited May 1, 2006 by Vadouvan (log)

[Diann]

Thanks for the cure ideas guys... I bought some king salmon (fresh, wild, but I doubt it's Copper River) from John Yi's on Saturday and now I know what I'm doing for dinner tonight

[shacke]

Thanks Vadouvan. Looking forward to trying it.

Evan

[Vadouvan]

I bought some king salmon (fresh, wild, but I doubt it's Copper River)

Diann, Pacific King salmon is just as good as Copper River King Salmon.

Both are excellent fish and in a blind tasting cooked the same way, nobody can consistently guess which is which.

[Diann]

I bought some king salmon (fresh, wild, but I doubt it's Copper River)

Diann, Pacific King salmon is just as good as Copper River King Salmon.

Both are excellent fish and in a blind tasting cooked the same way, nobody can consistently guess which is which.

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Vadouvan -- What makes the Copper River king salmon "legendary", then? Just curious.

[Vadouvan]

Vadouvan -- What makes the Copper River king salmon "legendary", then? Just curious

Legends develop a life of thier own.

It simply is an issue of supply and demand.

While the fish are no doubt excellent, the allure is the fact that the copper river season is short but in actuality, Copper River king salmon isnt any better than the Pacific king salmon that you can get 75% of the year.

A bit of it has to do with PR and marketing too.

Same thing with PEI.

Tons of restaurants say they serve PEI mussels, big effing deal, there are lots of mussels growing all over the place and the Ones from Prince edward island are that particularly special to have a "AOC" if you will.....on restaurant menus.

Pacific Pink Ocean Trout, the wild stuff is actually much better than copper river sockeye salmon.

So it has a lot to do with how the seafood industry markets products.

[ulterior epicure]

Slightly off topic, but since Vadouvan mentioned ocean trout - would the well touted "Tasmanian Ocean Trout" be another example of the "restaurant AOC" (by the way, I *LOVE* that term) hype?

u.e.

[rlibkind]

Just to build on Vadouvan's comments, and repeat what I noted earlier, within the same species what's more important than the geographic location is the freshness and handling of the fish. That will have a much greater impact on the taste and texture than whether the fish is from the Copper River district or Taku or Bristol Bay or wherever. I think the reason the Copper River King I've had has been so good is because of the quality of the catching and shipping and the swiftness with which it is brought to market. My basic attitude in buying fish for cooking at home or ordered in a restaurant is what's best today, not what fish is it. In other words, I'd rather have a Jersey blue right out of the water than a week-old salmon, but I'd rather have a week-old salmon (properly shipped and handled) than a two-day old Jersey blue.

[Vadouvan]

Slightly off topic, but since Vadouvan mentioned ocean trout - would the well touted "Tasmanian Ocean Trout" be another example of the "restaurant AOC" (by the way, I *LOVE* that term) hype?

u.e.

If the "Tasmanian Ocean Trout" is actually caught of the coast of NZ/Australia/Tasmania and it is genetically the correct fish and isnt raised in fish farms in massachusets/rhode island........then no that isnt a case of hype.

That actually is a very special and delicious fish which isnt really replicated elsewhere.

We are talking about the fish in the TETSUYA cookbook correct ?

Um....that fish rocks.

Same with BARRAMUNDI and ONAGA, they dont really need to be qualified with geographic location because they are really only found in the relatively same area.

My point was that the King salmon in copper river and the pacific are basically the same fish so there is a degree of hype in the copper river season.

We all know the fishery world is full of inaccuracies bodering on BS.

Most Florida Snapper at the markets arent even snapper at all....

and Chilean sea bass ?

lets not even go there.

By the way UE, you got some of the best damn pics on the net.

I was just pouring through your Flicker stuff.

Good stuff

RLIBKIND's point I agree with 100%.

Transportation and merchandising of fish is key.

Sadly consumers want to see fish prettily displayed on top of Ice at 52 degrees instead of covered with it below 40 degrees.

Remember DOCSconz's signature line about the sardine and lobster ?

[Greg Ling]

the guy who had a hand in promoting the copper river salmon is also one of the guys who also helped bring back the west coast oysters so he knows a thing about marketing.

And that barramundi is being farmed in the south now.

[KatieLoeb]

Met the chef from Twenty21 this evening and he confirmed that the Copper River Salmon will be available in 2.5-3 weeks.

[Bobby 2 Shakes]

The answers to my original query went even beyond my already high expectaions. Thanks, everybody, and I have to agree with Vadouvan on UE's Flickr photos. Top shelf.

[Jeff L]

Your slow roast sounds like an absolutely delicious way to enjoy the salmon, but I'd hesitate to flat out state it's the "best" way. Grilling works, too

Bob, I think its the best way for the KING salmon because it allows you to enjoy what you are paying for, the fat content and unctous texture. Nothing wrong with grilling salmon, its quite good but its a completely different texture from slowroasting.

Grilling subjects the surface to high heat which gives that crispy exterior and you get a grade in texture to medium rare, although that crispy crunch is tasty, for me its dry and you are going to have to eat it pretty damn quickly because the heat that it takes to do it right continues to cook it after its off the heat. Grilling is in the range of 400 to 600 degrees depending on grilling medium.

Pre-cured slow roasting however is done at 225 degrees, no more

The initial curing draws out excess moisture and firms up the fish.

Slow roasting then texturises it just to barely flake and then you can really taste the flavor and texture you are paying for........"In my opinion"

I have no idea if it was king or sockeye.

Sockeye will be a really deep red color, has a lower fat content than KING which makes it not nearly as tasty, think of it as Angus VS Wagyu Beef.

King is lighter, bigger fish cross section and fattier.

What kind of curing do you recommend?

Evan

Again in my opinion, lengthy cures and dry spicing ruin the fish for slow roasting.

Mix together.

1/4 cup of Kosher or Maldon salt

1/4 cup Superfine Sugar not powdered 10x......superfine.

The zest of 2 large lemons, removed with a microplane, no other tool.

Rub your boneless salmon filets with this mixture.

About 1 tablespoon for every 8 oz of fish.

Top with one fresh bay leaf and wrap tight in plastic.

Refrigerate for 2hrs max.

Rinse of fish, dry well with lint free cotton or food grade paper towel.

Rub lightly with high quality EVOO.

Bake in a 225 degree oven till it just flakes and no white liquid (coagulated proteins) are oozing out of it yet.

Works great with Char,Ocean Trout, Mackrel, hamachi.

Cheers.

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Approximately how long to slow roast with 1 pound of salmon? I know you said until it flakes, but how much time does this usually take you?

Also, does this method make ordinary salmon taste much better too? I'm not sure I can locate the King around here

[Vadouvan]

Approximately how long to slow roast with 1 pound of salmon? I know you said until it flakes, but how much time does this usually take you?

Also, does this method make ordinary salmon taste much better too? I'm not sure I can locate the King around here

I dont know that it makes ordinary salmon taste "better" however slow roasting properly executed allows you to taste unnoticed Nuaces of salmon cooked by traditional methods....in my opinion.

You can find KING at the markets, strangely I was at Reading terminal, Citarella and Chelsea market yesterday and found KING salmon all 3 places.

1lb of Salmon = 16 0z.

That's one big ass piece of fish.

Please note that if you intend to portion this piece of fish, you should do it before you cook it and quite frankly before you cure it.

If you try to cut it after it flakes, its a mess as opposed to a clean raw slice.

ALSO.....

Huge pieces dont distribute cures evenly.

I would do it in maximum 8oz pieces.

1.If your oven is preheated and the fish is from the refrigerator, estimate 20-25 minutes.

2.If your oven is preheated and you bring the fish close to room temp for about 15 minutes

before cooking 15 to 20 minutes....based on your appreciation of sashimi. (best method).

3.If your oven is not preheated..........preheat your oven and refer to #2.

4.If your oven does *not* have convection, add 5 minutes to cooking time.

The Acid Test of slow roasting....

If the white milky proteins are leaching out of the fish. its getting overcooked.

Cheers

Edited May 3, 2006 by Vadouvan (log)

[Bill Miller]

I get mine from Sea Bear out of Washington state--supposedly 2 days after it's caught. Really special--better than I've found in stores. Expensive though. Mine will come in mid june.