When I moved to Seattle, I said something to my father that I've never been able to live down: "I don't like salmon." I have since changed my position, but this does not stop him from doing things like calling me to say, "I am making dinner, but you should not come over because I'm cooking salmon and you don't like it," then laughing maniacally.
For most of my life, the only salmon I encountered either came out of a can or was smoked and served as lox on a bagel. My only dealings with "fresh" salmon involved dry, overcooked pink slabs, reminiscent of chubby sunburned white baby flesh, served at wedding banquets.
I was ignorant. Back then, I didn't think about the difference between farm-raised and wild fish. I had no idea that fishermen like those from Cape Cleare Fishery catch individual wild Alaskan salmon on the line and freeze it at sea immediately after catching it and sell it off a boat in Port Townsend directly to customers. I certainly didn't know about Lummi Island Wild and their fishermen who catch wild salmon in reef nets, a Native American tradition, then reverentially bleed them live before resting them in ice, resulting in salmon that is unforgettably flavorful and supple.
If, like me, you want to continue your salmon education, head to TASTE at SAM on Sunday, August 3, for a five-course dinner featuring Lummi Island Wild salmon, along with a presentation on reef-net fishing.
Sunday Supper at TASTE, Sun Aug 3, 1300 First Ave, 5:30 pm, $90 per person, reservations 903-5291.
