Off Topic... How to cook salmon

[padlin]

Seeing as how we have a number of PNW'erners here that eat a lot of salmon, I'd like to get some advice on cooking it, recipes and such. Keep in mind everything we get is frozen and shipped in. The lions share of what is available is light orange farmed, as often as not you can get steelhead, and occasionally sockeye.

When I cook sockeye or steelhead it's quite dry, with the fat content of farmed it is never dry. I'm aware steelhead is rainbow.

So how do you cook steelhead or sockeye? I normally grill everything.

[Bruce Wray]

Cook time for sockeye needs to be as short as possible; I'm generally under 2 minutes per side over no more than a medium fire. Over time you can develop a "touch" test - the thickest part should still feel springy when you pull it. It will keep cooking for a bit after you remove it from heat. Another tip: spread mayonnaise generously on each side before the fish goes on. Moisturizes the salmon, and does a great job keeping it from sticking to the grill.
Bruce

[gbaglo]

I've done The Only Salmon many many times. Always a success.

The only BBQ Salmon Recipe - Genius Kitchen

[reetired]

Steaks or filets?

Foil wrapped...
Lea and Perrins makes a white white Worcester sauce for chicken and a slice of butter.
Medium heat.. 5 minutes. Take a peek..fork split it's done.

Oh you haven't tasted salmon until you eat CopperRiver Salmon...only available in May.

[padlin]

Are both of these cooked directly on the grate? are they scaled? Much of what I find still has the scales, once in a while not.

Bruce, for the sockeye, is your advise for fillets as opposed to whole fish? all I get is fillets around here.

The sockeye and steelhead is normally small and thin, maybe 1 - 1 1/2 lb per side. The farmed is a lot bigger and thicker more like 2 1/2 lbs per side.

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by padlin

The lions share of what is available is light orange farmed,
I normally grill everything.

OMG, mentioning farmed salmon is like mentioning poutine.

We're a 3 way split; whole salmon in the oven, fillets in the Breville grill, cooks to perfection and the rest is smoked.

Good timing, this is the Indian Candy that I had for lunch. No, not all of it, too rich for that. Yummy.

Ron

[hughharden]

1. Plank it on a cedar board after a teriyaki marinade. Outrageous
2. Look up a recipe by a Vancouver firefighter that won some bbq awards, involved garlic, olive oil, sun dried tomatoes, parlsey I think it is amazing and always pleases.

I always cook fillets. I live in Calgary now but grew up in Vancouver so know my salmon.

[padlin]

Originally Posted by Ron in BC

OMG, mentioning farmed salmon is like mentioning poutine.

Does that mean they both look like heck?

[gbaglo]

Originally Posted by hughharden

2. Look up a recipe by a Vancouver firefighter that won some bbq awards, involved garlic, olive oil, sun dried tomatoes, parlsey I think it is amazing and always pleases.

Or see post #3 in this thread.

[Jim Bennett]

We eat a lot of salmon. Lisa is the one who usually prepares it at home, me on the road. There are lots of ways to cook salmon, including many mentioned here, the key though is to cook it on no more than medium heat. If you see the fat beads forming you are going too fast.

And whatever you do, DO NOT overcook it. If it even starts to separate with a fork take it off and let it set a bit. I would rather have a wee bit of undercooked meat than have it too dry.

Originally Posted by Ron in BC

OMG, mentioning farmed salmon is like mentioning poutine.

These two things are not even in the same ball park. Farmed salmon is never as tasty, and the methods used to farm are very sketchy to say the least. Poutine is one of the best ways there is to deliver potatoes. Sure there are others, like baked, stuffed, scalloped that can be near as good, but GOOD poutine is in a high ranking class of its own. Off our friends and family I bet there is a 90% approval rate, much more than what appears to be here.

Never should one equate second rate salmon to a first rate potato dish. For shame?

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

I've done The Only Salmon many many times. Always a success.

The only BBQ Salmon Recipe - Genius Kitchen

Will have to try this one. We love salmon done many different ways, and are always looking for other recipes to try. Lisa has a few killer ones under her belt, this one looks more my speed.

[Jim Bennett]

Oh, and this far from being an off topic subject. BBQ or baked salmon is very much part of camping in our Escape trailers. :

[gbaglo]

I served The Only BBQ Salmon at every rally pot luck except one. You need to budge Jim.

[Jim Bennett]

Originally Posted by gbaglo

I served The Only BBQ Salmon at every rally pot luck except one. You need to budge Jim.

Not sure if I ever got any, but I did get some pulled pork from the rally where you did not serve it. And I can budge.

[Steve Clark]

For fillets, I only use coarse ground pepper and enough lean bacon to cover. Use indirect cooking method with briquettes, skin side down and 15-20 minutes without turning...Oh My!

[padlin]

Although I try to not overcook anything, it seems I cook it at too hot a temp, I get the white fat beads often. I'll try one of these out tomorrow night.

[gharper]

For sockeye we like it slightly sweet, filleted, and in a hot oven or grill for 8 mins or so. Salt, pepper, brown sugar and honey (sometimes will add a bit of mustard or soya sauce). If we BBQ it the grill is hot, oiled before the fish goes on and we will have some wood chips smoking in the grill (hickory or alder). We place the skin side up first for about 3 min then flip over. The salmon will have a slight char and be moist.

[Ron in BC]

Originally Posted by Jim Bennett

Poutine is one of the best ways there is to deliver potatoes. Sure there are others, like baked, stuffed, scalloped that can be near as good, but GOOD poutine is in a high ranking class of its own.

Now there's a stretch, using the word poutine and high class in the same sentence.

Funny, I've never thought of poutine as a potato dish. Guess all that goop that's it's slathered with kind of obscures the potato aspect.

Give me scalloped or better yet, crispy hash browns slathered with ketchup. Yum.

Ron

[gbaglo]

Originally Posted by Ron in BC

Give me scalloped or better yet, crispy hash browns slathered with ketchup. Yum.

Ron

Fried in bacon grease. Love, love, love.
Next time you're on Clark Drive in Vancouver:
https://www.zomato.com/vancouver/tru...vancouver/menu
But, I'll never fathom wrapping scallops in bacon, or salmon as previously mentioned.

[Devil Dog]

For boned fillets, 2 - 4 table spoons of melted salted butter, 2 table spoons of water.
Skin side down on foil wrap loosely with air space in top . 15 min. on med- hi heat.
Set aside 5 min. serve with some lemon and fresh ground pepper . a bread roll in case you catch a bone on the way down and of course a cold beer or your favorite wine.
I do a whole fish the same way except the foil opening is on the side and I flip once for another 12 min. depend on how thick it is. Fish strait on the grill can be messy when it sticks AND you will get steak/ribs with fishy after tones.
I save the bacon for my morning eggs .