Both wild Sockeye and wild King salmon are in the market now, and available fresh and will be until late September or early October. Both types of wild Pacific salmon are a true delicacy, and very healthy. They are high in omega-3 fatty acids and vitamin D and low in omega-6 and saturated fats. But King salmon is sometimes as much as twice the price of Sockeye. So which variety should you choose?
In Northern California most of the King salmon comes from California, Oregon and Alaska. The local King salmon is exceptionally rich and has a creamy texture. It has a mild flavor, and is almost slightly sweet. But it’s the buttery texture that makes it so prized. It’s the richest in fat.
Sockeye salmon often comes from Alaska. It’s generally less expensive than King salmon, because it’s harvested at a smaller size and takes less time to grow. It’s also very rich, but has a more intense flavor and firmer texture.
While both fish are delicious and can be used interchangeably in recipes, I seared two pieces to compare them side by side. Looking at the raw pieces you can see the King salmon is paler and thicker, the Sockeye brighter orange, almost red, and thinner.
For me, King salmon was truly king and worth the higher price. The Sockeye has a deeper red color, and a stronger, almost nutty flavor. But if you cook the King gently, you’ll achieve a custard like consistency that is unparalleled.
Both are delicious seared, but I would recommend using Sockeye if you want to make gravlax. It’s color, flavor and texture hold up well to the salt and sugar marinade.
The King is best served very simply to highlight it’s delicate flavor and luxurious texture. I made a compound butter with white miso, honey and orange zest that complemented the fish beautifully.
Friday July 25th, 2014, King salmon will be on sale at Whole Foods for just $11.99 per pound. Enjoy it!
Disclaimer: My thanks to Whole Foods, they supplied portions of King salmon, I purchased Sockeye salmon for this taste test.
I'm not into raw food per se but I'm always on the lookout for yummy stuff... If it happens to be good for you, or at least not totally bad, that's a bonus. I'm at my hungriest in late afternoon, and I need to keep some sort of healthy snack at hand. I recently made these little balls from coconuts, almonds and dates, and they turned out to be delicious! Sort of like marzipan, sort of like cookie dough! And they come together in a few minutes, and keep for several days. They freeze well, too.
Coco-cardamom balls
100 ml almonds
150 ml coconut flakes (unsweetened)
15 dates
Pinch vanilla powder
Pinch cardamom
2 tbsp coconut oil
You do need a food processor. Start with the almonds - process until finely chopped. Add coconut flakes, dates, vanilla, cardamom and the oil. Process until you have a uniform mass.
Roll into little balls - this will be a little bit difficult as the "dough" is quite crumbly, but pinch and roll and you'll get there. Refrigerate, and they will firm up as the coconut oil goes solid again.
If you like other goodies like these, here's a good book to check out! Smarta Sötsaker ("Smart Sweets") by Ulrika Hoffer. It's a tad bit preachy, and the recipes are not super exact, but there are some great ideas in here. And lovely photography, too.
Browned butter makes everything better - even the eternal Swedish favorite chocolate balls. Browning the butter makes the flavors much more intense and caramelized. Yummy!
Brown butter chocolate balls
110 g butter
50 g dark chocolate
400 ml oats
110 g sugar
1/2 tbsp vanilla powder
3 tbsp cocoa
3 tbsp espresso
salt
To decorate:
Pearl sugar or coconut
Place the butter in a small saucepan, ideally one with a light inside color. Heat until it's caramel-colored, or maybe a little bit deeper. It will smell heavenly.
Chop the dark chocolate and place in a bowl. Pour over the hot butter, and wait for a minute. Stir until smooth. Next, stir in the oats, sugar, vanilla, cocoa powder and espresso, and a little pinch of salt.
Place in the fridge to firm up, then shape very small balls and roll in pearl sugar. Some prefer shredded coconut, I'll leave that up to you.
I wanted a zesty, fruity sauce with high acidity to go with a duck breast. I'm not a sauce cook, really, but this one turned out great! As you can see, with ate this with noodles and veggies, but it's also great with rice.
Makes enough for four people, with perhaps a little leftovers.
Orange Sauce
2 tbsp sugar
4 tbsp white wine vinegar
2 oranges - juice and zest
1 tbsp concentrated veal stock
250 ml white wine
Salt
1 tbsp corn starch
1 tbsp water
1 tbsp butter
Start by mixing sugar and vinegar in a saucepan. Bring to a boil and keep cooking until the mixture turns a light caramel. Remove from heat, and add in orange juice (but reserve the zest for later!), veal stock, wine and salt. Cook on high heat until it reduces quite a bit - perhaps for 5 minutes. Lower the heat and cook for an additional 5, maybe 10 minutes.
Stir the corn starch with the water and add to the pan. Bring to a boil and cook for a few minutes, until it thickens. If it's too thick, add more water. If it's perfect, add the orange zest, whisk in the butter, and serve.
I had leftover strawberries after Midsummer, turning a little soft and mushy. What to do? Jam. Obviously.
So. I used 500 g of strawberries, zest and juice from one lemon, and seeds from one vanilla bean. I blitzed this quickly with a stick blender, then added 400 g of jam sugar (with pectin). I let it sit for about an hour, then boiled it vigorously for five minutes. And that was that. Done.
Made three small jars. (And a half, actually.)
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