HOW TO USE
With its brilliant color, this sockeye should be the featured food on your plate. Locals up in Alaska enjoy it with rice and a shake of furikake, but it’s also wonderful in seafood soups and chowders, noodle dishes and even with eggs: Try adding it to a breakfast frittata or folding it into soft curds of scrambled eggs. Flake the salmon into a salad with some watercress, avocado, pumpkin seeds and cloudy apple cider vinegar. The lush avocado complements the rich salmon, both of which are balanced by the acid. The greens add freshness, while the pumpkin seeds lend texture. Toss with spaghetti, garlic, tomato and herbs. And while the salmon is of course a wonderful addition to any dish, we truly think the flavorful meat can hold its own. It needs little more than a quality cracker, sprig of dill and slice of cucumber.
Kitchen Notes
Start to finish: 30 minutes
Servings: 4
—Rose Hattabaugh
Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high, heat 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil until shimmering. Add 1 large fennel bulb (trimmed, halved lengthwise, cored and thinly sliced) and ¼ teaspoon kosher salt. Cover and cook, stirring occasionally, until beginning to brown, about 5 minutes. Stir in ½ teaspoon fennel seeds, cover and set aside off heat. To the boiling water, add 1 tablespoon kosher salt and 8 ounces fettuccine. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the pasta is al dente. Reserve about 1 cup cooking water, then drain. Add the pasta, ½ cup crème fraîche and ½ cup reserved pasta water to the skillet. Cook over medium, tossing, until the pasta is lightly sauced, 1 to 2 minutes; add more reserved water as needed so the noodles are silky. Off heat, stir in a 6-ounce can Wildfish Cannery Smoked Sockeye Salmon(drained and flaked), 1 tablespoon grated lemon zest, ¼ cup lemon juice and 1 teaspoon ground black pepper. Off heat, taste and season with salt. If desired, serve sprinkled with chopped fennel fronds or chopped fresh dill.