I bought a package of Copper River salmon at Costco yesterday. Of course they only sell enormous packages of whole fillets, but I froze some and this will make four nice meals with more generous portions that you will get in any Seattle restaurant.
The Copper River is a 290 mile long river in south-central Alaska. The river's delta is over 700,000 acres, making it the largest coastal wetland on the Pacific coast of North America. It is used by 16 million shorebirds, including the world's entire population of western sandpipers and dunlins.
The spring run of 2 million Copper River salmon are prized for their high fat content. The fisheries are managed by the Alaska Department of Fish and Game and the Department of the Interior.
The commercial salmon season in the region is highly regulated and very brief, beginning in May with periods lasting for just a few hours or days.
I think fish this special deserves careful but simple preparation. Of course it's good on the grill, but that can be tricky because salmon dries out so easily.
Here's a good indoor method. Start skin-side down in sizzling butter with a touch of lemon juice. After the skin browns, it peels right off. (Make a neighborhood crow happy.) Then let the top brown a bit and turn the fillet once more. It only takes a few minutes from start to finish.
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