may 2007

Salmon is King

by Judith H. Dern

Beginning in April and throughout the summer, wild Pacific salmon leave the ocean and swim upriver to spawn in streams where they were born. Their journey has been a cause for celebration for centuries. Natives of the Pacific Northwest honored the salmon’s annual return to its home waters with rituals of food and song, and today’s residents of the Northwest celebrate salmon season with equal zeal. Grocery stores and restaurants proclaim the arrival of the first salmon on signboards and menus. Seattle locals crowd the fish stalls at Pike Place Market, the city’s famous farmers’ market celebrating its 100th anniversary this year. Christine Keff, executive chef-owner of Seattle’s Flying Fish, most often grills salmon by basting it with a simple lemon-butter sauce. As she notes, “Really good fish doesn’t need much.” Ditto for Tom Douglas at Etta’s Seafood Restaurant who claims that “when you work hard to find the very best product, you shouldn’t screw it up by overcooking it or covering it with a gloppy sauce”.

The Pacific Northwest natives agreed. Their traditional method was to roast salmon on cedar and alder planks staked around a pit fire, a method that’s easy to simulate today. Conveniently packaged (and untreated) in a size practical for any grill, today’s wood planks add subtle smoky aromas that enhance the flavor of salmon. One taste and we predict you’ll be seduced by salmon, roasted Pacific Northwest-style with wood, smoke and fire.

Strawberry Cream Cheese Parfaits

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Ingredients

4 cups sliced strawberries
2 tablespoons lime juice
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 cup fat-free ricotta cheese
4 ounces cream cheese, softened
1/4 cup powdered
1 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 cup crumbled vanilla wafers (about 24 cookies)

Instructions

1. Combine strawberries, lime juice and sugar; toss well.
2. Combine ricotta, cream cheese, powdered sugar and vanilla in a medium bowl; stir well with a whisk. Spoon 2 tablespoons cookie crumbs into each of 4 parfait glasses. Top each portion with 1/4 cup strawberry slices and 3 tablespoons ricotta mixture; repeat the layers. Chill 2 hours. Serves 4.

"Relish the Season," May 2007.

Nutritional Information

Per serving: 360 calories, 14g fat, 9g prot., 53g carbs., 4g fiber, 220mg sodium.

Cucumber Mango Relish

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Seasoned rice vinegar is rice vinegar with sugar and salt added.

Ingredients

1 cup peeled, diced English cucumber (1/4-inch cubes)
1 cup diced mango (1/4-inch cubes)
3 tablespoons seasoned rice vinegar
2 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro
1 tablespoon finely chopped red onion

Instructions

1. Combine all ingredients; mix well. Chill. Serves 4.

Nutritional Information

Per serving: 10 calories, 0g fat, 1g prot., 2g carbs., 1g fiber, 2mg sodium.

Spiced Plank-Grilled Salmon

Mark Boughton Photography/Teresa Blackburn Food Styling

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Plank roast the fish the Northwest way using cedar or alder planks on your outdoor grill. You can find planks at kitchen stores and some supermarkets. This recipe is adapted from The Sustainable Kitchen: Passionate Cooking Inspired by Farms, Forests and Oceans by Stu Stein, Mary Hinds and Judith Dern.

Ingredients

Spice rub:
2 tablespoons smoked paprika or Hungarian paprika
2 teaspoons brown sugar
1 teaspoon kosher salt
1/2 teaspoon coarsely ground pepper
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/2 teaspoon ground cardamom
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1/4 teaspoon ground cloves
1/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper

1 cedar or alder grilling plank, soaked for 1 hour
4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets

Instructions

1. Preheat the grill.
2. To prepare the spice rub, combine all ingredients in a small bowl.
3. Rub spice mixture over top of salmon. Place salmon skin side down on plank. Place plank on grill. Cook, covered, until salmon flakes with a fork, about 10 minutes. Serves 4.

VARIATION: For plain plank-grilled salmon, rub the salmon with olive oil, sprinkle with kosher salt, and grill.

Nutritional Information

Per serving: 330 calories, 19g fat, 34g protein, 5g carbohydrates, 2g fiber, 580mg sodium.

By Judith H. Dern, a food writer in Seattle, Wash.