Sockeye with Filbert Romesco
Most of the sockeye or red salmon from Alaska goes to Japan, but the Copper River sockeye benefit from the branding of the Copper River Kings (chinooks) and fetch a good price in the lower forty-eight. The harvest of sockeye is about twice the chinook catch, and the inexorable law of supply and demand fills the clamor for Copper River salmon with the bright red, succulent flesh of the sockeye. A few years back I had to wait for my friends who fished Bristol Bay to bring me a supply of frozen sockeye fillets, but now I can buy them from mid-May through June at fish mongers all around town. If you can't find sockeye, the Romesco sauce is good with any salmon, other grilled fish or meat, or just about anything else.
Sockeye are smaller than chinook, and a half-fish filet typically weighs about 2 pounds. I like to brush them with olive oil and cook them over indirect heat on the barbecue. You can also bake the salmon, but with either method, don't overcook. With a medium-hot pile of coals on one side of the Weber, a filet cooks in about 10 minutes. In a 350-degree oven, it might be a a little longer, but either way, check the thickest part of the fish and pull it off the heat while it's still a little transluscent.
Salmon is an icon of the Pacific Northwest, so it's only appropriate to serve it with another food identified with the area. I grew up next to a filbert orchard, and that's still what I call them, even thought the marketing folks prefer hazelnut. Whatever you call them, they give this Spanish sauce (traditionally made with almonds) a little local flavor.
Filbert Romesco
2 red bell peppers, roasted
1 cup filberts, toasted and skins rubbed off
3 cloves garlic
3 tablespoons tomato paste
1 teaspoon (or more, to taste) Pimenton de La Vera (smoked Spanish paprika)
1-2 tablespoons lemon juice or red wine vinegar
extra virgin olive oil
Roast the peppers. I lay them right on the gas burner and turn them with tongs until they're completely blackened. You can also use the broiler, or even a propane torch. When the skin is charred all over, place in a bowl to cool (most recipes for roasting peppers call for 'sweating' them in a paper or plastic bag, but I've found this really isn't necessary). Peel the blackened skin off with your fingers, or use a paring knife, holding the blade at a right angle to the pepper and scraping. You don't have to get every little speck off. Remove the stem and seed core.
Toast the filberts. Put them in the oven (350) for about 20 minutes or until the skins darken and crack a bit. Pour the nuts onto a clean towel, fold it over, and rub them vigorously. You might have to pick a little more skin off with your fingers, and again it's not necessary to get them completey cleaned off.
Combine the roasted peppers with the filberts, tomato paste, paprika, lemon juice, and garlic in the Cuisinart (or a blender, but chop things up first). Process a little, then drizzle in a few tablespoons of oil and process until you have a smooth puree...add a little more oil if it seems too thick. Taste and add a little salt