I am tired of hiding, tired of running, tired of being sooo dishonest, and really tired of being a hypocrite like so many here. I know there are others who poach salmon and some who even poach steelhead. Many are on this board that never say anything about it. I am a blatent salmon poacher no ifs ans or buts about it. I will continue to poach salmon and whatever else I want to poach as long as I live. Theres nothing or nobody that will ever stop me from poaching. Not even WDFW can stop me! NEVER! You havent lived until you have poached! Dont knock it till you try it. Its not just a redneck thing. Its something that keeps me interested in fishing even though there are so many regulations and vegitarian do gooders that think poaching salmon should be illegal. screw them! They cant stop me either!


I DARE THIS STATE TO TRY AND STOP ME FROM POACHING SALMON! WRITE UP ALL THOSE FRIVILOUS TICKETS! THE SUPREME JUDGE IS ON MY SIDE!!!!

JUST TO MAKE IT EASIER FOR THOSE TICKET WRITERS OUT THERE HERE'S A LINK WITH ALL THE DETAILS OF HOW AND WHERE I POACH SALMON. SALMON POACHER FOREVER!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My poaching page . Tips for the salmon poacher in everybody! COME AND GET ME!

Right on Aunty,

I poach sturgeon too. The best part about poaching is there is no season.

Salmosalr: I tend to agree with you about the salmon. But I have had poached halibut and poached lingcod, that were awesome. Done right it's a lot like lobster.

Anything I could do in a microwave is a bonus for me.

HOLY CRAP LMFAO

I tend to agree with salar. Poaching salmon is a waste of good salmon that would be better barbequed. Of course, if you have salmon that is not good or excellent, then poaching and marinades and other sorts of "cover ups" for low grade fish are in order. I either throw it out or give it to someone who doesn't know and or doesn't care about the quality of their salmon. If I can't have salmon that is perfect, or close to it, then I go get a decent hamburger.

There is a point in cooking many fish, salmon, halibut, lingcod, and true cod among them, when the fish is done but not dry. Overcook just a bit and eating quality plummets.

I gather that some masters of the BBQ can reliably achieve that perfect state of doneness on the grill or plank.

I'm more reliable cooking fish in the oven and maybe finishing under the broiler. And for all but the fattest Chinook I like to use a little white wine for moisture and flavor.

Here's a standard aluminum foil boat technique which works real well for me for Chinook, sockeye, lingcod, halibut, and true cod:

Form the "boat" in the baking pan and drizzle a little olive oil in the boat. Lay in the fish fillet and season it. For halibut, ling cod, and true cod, I often go with just lemon, S$P, and a herb, most often thyme.

Pour a white wine, preferably one with some sweetness, about 1/8 to 1/4 inch deep in the aluminum foil boat around the fish. Don't submerge the fillet in wine! The wine gives a slight "poaching effect" helping to keep the fillet moist. (But the fish will still be ruined if it's overcooked, wine or no wine.)

Just before putting the fish in a hot oven (450F), drizzle some olive oil over the fillet. Sometimes instead of drizzling with olive oil I dot the fillet with thin sliced pads of butter.

I've had real good results sprinkling hungarian paprika over sockeye fillets after the olive oil drizzle.

Ten minutes per inch of fillet thickness is a ball park figure but I always yank the pan out of the oven a time or two and check doneness. It is so easy to overcook fish! The results of overcooking are particularly disastrous with halibut and true cod, imo.

When the fish is salmon, particularly sockeye, I like to adjust the baking time to allow me to finish the fillet under the broiler on high. That produces a nice browned crusty effect, particularly on sockeye sprinkled with paprika.

Spring is almost here! Won't be long now till fresh Alaskan sockeye shows in the markets!

SS,

Good salmon requires no olive oil nor wine while cooking because it's got plenty of moisture content of its own due to being fresh and of high lipid content. Now, as the BBQer of the world's best salmon, I may require a little beer or wine while the salmon is on the grill, but that is a different matter. I kid you not, when I BBQ a salmon fillet, you'll have no desire for lemon, herbs, or any of the numerous additives used to "cover" up the inherent dryness and poor flavor of sub-standard salmon.

I think the combination of oven and broiler is too much opportunity to bugger up good fish. I use only the grill and am real anal about how hot my fire is and how long per side I cook fish. Over-cooked fish means a lucky day for the neighbor's cat.

Sincerely,

Salmo g.

I've been poaching liver for about 20 years.

Fish on the barbie should be slow cooked, not flipped and removed while still a hint of raw in the middle. It will finish cooking on the plate.