Copper River Salmon

tksmoke

I stopped by Whole Foods to pick up a few thing before heading to my favorite meat boutique, Costco, and they had Copper River salmon.  And only 19.99/lb if you buy the whole fish.  I wanted salmon, but maybe not that bad.  So off to Costco where they had Copper River salmon for 9.99/lb for whole fish minus head.  I filleted that bad boy and had about a third of it for dinner tonight - grilled on the new medium BGE.  Oh yeah!!  Most excellent - highly recommended.  Copper River salmon are about the best!!! 

buzd504

Your pictures aren't loading for me.

RRP

When I first got hooked on Copper River Salmon about 10 years ago I could only buy it at the ONLY local fish monger and it was like $24.99 a pound. I bit the bullet and bought some. It really was better salmon than I was accustomed to...but just the same...$24.99 a pound got me to wondering. A small amount of research revealed Copper River Salmon is one of the best marketing ploys ever pulled off! In fact it rates right up there with Thompsons Water Seal. Marketing may make sh*t shine for a while, but it doesn't last...

tksmoke

Ron - I lived in AK for 8 years, and caught a lot of red salmon.  There is no doubt in my mind that the Copper River reds are the best.  They have the highest fat content.   The Omega 3s are good for.. I forget what... Oh yeah, they're the antidote to PBR.  I don't know if you are saying that the fish sold as copper river reds don't come from there, or that they are a marketing program (like almost everything else).  But even looking at the beautiful color of the meat, you can tell they are something special.  The per pound price at Whole Foods was $29.99 (for fillets).  Living down in SoCal, a fresh, wild caught Copper River red is about the best salmon you can come by.

tksmoke

buzd504 said:

Your pictures aren't loading for me.

Shoot - they aren't loading for me either...  Sorry - this post wasn't really about my cook, more about the availability of some really good salmon at a reasonable price.  I was too excited about eating it to take pictures.  If they still have it next week I'll take some pictures when I do it again.

nolaegghead

I have friends from Alaska, and they say the same.  The chinook (king) from Copper River are the best.  It's not a brand name, its one of the largest rivers in the US. And lots of different salmon run it.

tksmoke

The Copper River kings are excellent!!  The reds (or sockeye) have a higher fat content.  If you are sport fishing, kings are the hot ticket.  Reds are interesting - they appear as lines in the rivers - millions of fish.  One of the big things is dip-netting reds, and Chitina (on the Copper River) is probably the most popular place to go.  Limit - 15 -30/day, depending on how many in the household.  You are allowed 1 king.  Of course the reds run 8 - 15 lbs, while the kings can be much larger. 

Chitina is near one of my favorite places in AK - McCarthy/Kennicott.  It is way off the beaten path, but well worth the travails of the journey.  It is the home to a ghost town copper mine located at the foot of a glacier - it's very gothic, but great fun.  Also the center of the largest National Park - Wrangell-St. Elias.  Lots of things to do there that are well outside the normal tourist fare: glacier trekking, ice climbing, etc. 

 

smbishop

Thanks, just picked up a bunch of fillets at Costco for 14.99.  Spent a lot more for it in the past.  I am sure there is marketing involved, but it brings me some of my old "Seattle" comfort now that I am in Texas.