Savory Salmon Recipes For Your Next Fishing Expedition

Cooking and eating fish that you caught that day is a real treat! As long as it’s cooked properly, the smell is sweet, the flavors are rich, and the meat is succulent. Here are a few salmon recipes for your next fishing trip. They are simple to fix but very tasty. Of course you can use these at home on fish from the market too. But it won’t taste as good as when you cook your fish fresh out of the water right next to the river.

This recipe is perfect for Sockeye (Red) Salmon.

Ingredients:
Sockeye Salmon fillets (as many as you want)
Marinade (you may use one of the recipes below or use a pre-made marinade sauce such as Yoshida’s Gourmet Sauce; you need enough marinade to coat fillets.)

Also Needed:
1 large (2-gallon) zip lock bag (or more, depending on how many fillets you’re cooking)
Cooler with plenty of ice
Good quality charcoal briquettes (do NOT use lighter fluid)
Small wire grill
Heavy duty aluminum foil

Lemon-Dill Marinade:

Ingredients (makes enough for 4 fillets)
¾ cup of vegetable oil
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
1 teaspoon of Worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon of dill
½ teaspoon of chives
1 teaspoon of parsley
¼ teaspoon of lemon pepper

Make the marinade just before you leave to go fishing. If going for longer than a day, mix just prior to marinating fish. Place all ingredients in a zip lock bag, seal, and mix until evenly distributed. Store in cooler.

Honey and Basil Marinade

Ingredients (makes enough for 4 fillets)
½ cup of fresh basil leaves
3 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons of lemon juice
2 tablespoons of honey
½ teaspoon of pepper and salt

Use the same directions used for Lemon-Dill Marinade.

3 Sauce Marinade

Ingredients (makes enough for 4 fillets)
1/3 cup olive oil
1/3 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons steak sauce (such as A-1)
2 teaspoons Worcestershire Sauce
3 cloves fresh garlic (minced)
1 tablespoon dry tarragon

Mix as with other marinades.

Prep and Cooking

* Place fillets in marinade in plastic bag, seal, and store in cooler for 30 minutes to 1 hour. (Do not marinate too long or fillets may start to deteriorate. Always marinate in a cold container.)

* Make a small fire with charcoal.

* Once coals are hot-- ashen white-- place fillets skin side down on grill, brush or drizzle with marinade, and cover with a tent of aluminum foil. (The foil acts like a lid, allowing fish to cook on both sides at once)

* With the grill about 3 inches over the coals, cook the fillets for about 15-20 minutes. When the meat flakes, the fish is done. Overcooking will dry out the fish and compromise its flavor.

* Serve at once.

* Store any cooked, uneaten fillets in the cooler for the next day.

Each of these marinades is simple to make and will keep in an iced cooler for a few days. Never reuse marinade; once you’ve put raw fish in it, only use in cooking and NOT as a dipping sauce. Leaving fish too long in a marinade can turn it mushy. To be safe, marinate fillets for 30 to 60 minutes.

Enjoy your fishing and good eating!