I promised my self readers that I would start blogging more, as the past few months have seen quite a decline. As of yesterday I began a vacation in Bodega Bay, California, which is located about 20 miles west of Sonoma right on the coast. Being that we are on the west coast and in a fishing town, I knew that we’d be buying some fresh fish to eat at our house. What I didn’t know was how fresh.
After a failed attempt at buying some fish at a high end store, we opted to trust Yelp to lead us to Paisano’s Bros Fish Market, which is literally on the dock. Walking up to the fish market, we noticed that a boat had actually just come in with buckets filled with fresh King Wild Salmon. They were lopping off the heads and getting them packed for shipment. Luckily we arrived just in time to purchase a giant 8 pound monster salmon (already gutted) for our dinner. Little did I know that I’d have to figure out how to cut off the filets myself (first time trying).
After consulting youtube for a few videos on how to cut up the fish, I took to it with help from my father-in-law and family friend. While I can’t say the task was completed perfectly, the fish was really the freshest fish (and about the tastiest) I have ever had. We cut a lot off and ate it within seconds, true sushi grade salmon. The rest was cut into filets for grilling.
The fish was likely caught, gutted, filleted and eaten within just a few hours. The only thing more rewarding would have been if I caught and gutted the fish myself. Attached are a few pictures of the salmon adventure. I won’t bother providing directions/cooking instructions of my own, since it was pretty amateur all around.
I look forward to the next fresh seafood purchase…GIANT crabs.
Now that is a beautiful looking fish! I’ve bought whole salmon in Chinatown (undoubtedly nowhere as fresh as yours), so I know that filleting can be daunting!
Thanks! If only I could have caught it! Filleting is hard on its own, and when you have dull knives, it was quite the challenge