Swim upstream into the holidays thanks to SALMON
Editor’s Note: Gone Fishin’ is an installment in an ongoing series of stories and videos aimed at the fear of cooking fish. This month, DeLancey Miller, of US Foods, shows how to cook salmon on a salt block.
For our second Gone Fishin’ lesson at American Propane, local fishmonger DeLancey Miller brought in a beautiful whole farm-raised Atlantic salmon from British Columbia.
Salmon is one of the easier fish to find in grocery stores, but there are different kinds. You’ll see wildcaught and farm-raised, and both have their strengths.
“British Columbia has a phenomenal program,” Miller said. “They make sure the fish is handled, fed and raised properly, but not all of them do that.”
So, don’t hesitate to ask your grocer where they source their salmon. Miller brought a whole fish because, he said, salmon is readily available in that form. He said you can smoke the whole fish and eat on it for a week, but more importantly cut and control your own filets.
“Most people are gonna buy filets,” he admitted. “But I wanted to show how easy it is to break down, and because there’s a lot you can do with a whole fish.”
That includes saving the bones, head and other parts for fish stock. Miller broke the 16-pounder down into about a 5-pound filet that was then sliced into assorted sizes. From simple oven-baked salmon to ground salmon patties, the orange-fleshed fish is a durable as any seafood.
“This fish, because of the quality of how it was raised, could be consumed as sashimi,” Miller said.
Sashimi, if you don’t know, is the term used in Japanese cuisine for thin slices of fish typically consumed raw.
When it comes to picking out the fish, Miller said look deep into the fish’s eyes. “You want the fish to be iridescent like it is in the water, and the eyes to be clear and free of any cloudiness.”
He said if you’re buying a whole fish, you might inspect the gills to make sure they are still intact and brown. If the fish is split, check the belly meat to ensure it doesn’t
separate too easily from the bones.
He said a family can make few better purchases than a vacuum-sealer.
"Once you get those filets cut, seal those fish up, and when you take them out a week later, they'll taste as good as they did on the first day.
But plastic can be an enemy to fish, so be sure to rinse it well once you've unwrapped it. The same goes for the wrapping on the fish you get at the store.
"You want to rinse your fish really quick before you start cooking it," Miller said. "The smell from fish is just its oils releasing."
If it smells a little like a boat dock, he said, that's natural because boat docks are by the ocean and that's where the fish come from. In the case of salmon, they spend time in both fresh and saltwater.
Health benefits
But the popularity of salmon, Miller said, is directly related to what it can do for humankind.
"It has about all the health benefits," he said.
It's true, salmon routinely is promoted by organizations like the Seafood Nutrition Program for its diverse benefits to the human body, including high content of omega-3 fatty acid content, protein and potassium.
Salmon also provides selenium, a mineral that protects bone health, improves thyroid function and reduces risk of cancer.
It also contains astaxanthin, an antioxidant believed to benefit heart, brain, nervous system and skin health. And of course, salmon is much lower in fat and calories than most beef, pork or chicken.
Salmon also is readily available fresh, canned and even stored in pouches.
A simple filet like DeLancey cut will cook in a 350 F oven in about 15 minutes or in a pan in minutes. In the 1990s, it became all the rage to grill them on top of a cedar plank.
For our purposes, DeLancey chose a simple preparation on a salt block from the Himalayas.
"The thing I like about using the Himalayan salt block is how simple it is," Miller said.
"You get home from work and you're in a hurry, all you have to do is put the fish on the block, the block goes on the oven, or the stovetop or even on your grill. You don't need a bunch of spices when the block has 64 minerals and all that salt."
These days, Himalayan salt blocks can be found in your grocery store.
I watched DeLancey break down the salmon, slice into a four-ounce portions and cook it on salt blocks with fresh onions and tomatoes inside 30 minutes.
All this while being filmed and answering questions.
I also had a few requests to reprint our halibut recipe from the summer, so you'll find it to the right, too. The Himalayan salt block can be used in the oven, on the stove top or in a smoker or grill.
It will impart salt to whatever is cooking upon it. To clean it, scrape away residue with a heavy-duty spatula while it hot, then rinse clean with cold water.