Gochujang Glazed Copper River Salmon

By Captain George Nippell

F/V JIMANI

Discover the perfect fusion of Gochujang Glazed Copper River Salmon – a spicy, savory delight. Baked to perfection, served over Coconut Pineapple Rice. Elevate your meal with this easy-to-make, flavorful recipe featuring the finest Copper River salmon.

This recipe is by a commercial fisherman who fished in the Copper River Fishing District for many seasons in the 1980s and 1990s.

Serves: 10-12

Prep time: 20 minutes

Gochujang Glaze

Ingredients

½ cup Gochujang (red chili paste)

1 tbsp chopped garlic

1 tbsp chopped/crushed ginger

1 tbsp toasted sesame oil

1 tbsp mirin

1 tbsp light soy sauce

1 tbsp brown sugar

¼ cup crushed pineapple

Directions 

1 In a small saucepan, combine Gochujang, chopped garlic, chopped/crushed ginger, toasted sesame oil, mirin, light soy sauce, brown sugar, and crushed pineapple.

2 Blend the ingredients and simmer gently.

3 If the glaze needs thinning, add pineapple juice gradually until it reaches the desired consistency.

4 Test the glaze by drawing the back of a spoon through it. If it leaves a track, it's about right.

Copper River Salmon

Ingredients

Copper River salmon fillets (king, sockeye, or coho)

Salt and pepper

Directions 

1 Preheat the oven to 400 degrees with the rack in the upper third.

2 Season your choice of Copper River salmon fillets with salt and pepper.

3 Paint a tablespoon or so of the glaze on each Copper River salmon fillet.

4 Bake for 12-13 minutes for ½-inch Copper River salmon fillets, adjusting the time for thicker fillets.

5 Plate Copper River salmon and paint another tablespoon of glaze onto each fillet.

Coconut Pineapple Rice

Ingredients

Your usual rice preparation

¼ cup crushed pineapple

2 tbsp sweetened coconut

1 tsp sugar

1 tsp minced/crushed ginger or ½ tsp ground ginger

Directions 

1 Prepare your usual rice according to your preferred method.

2 Mix in crushed pineapple, sweetened coconut, sugar, and minced/crushed ginger or ground ginger.

3 Adjust ingredient quantities based on your taste preferences.

4 Serve the Gochujang Glazed Copper River Salmon over the Coconut Pineapple Rice.

Good to Know STORY

Gochujang is a savory, sweet, and spicy Korean chili paste made with fermented soybeans. There are any number of glazes that feature gochujang, from a basic gochujang, mirin, sesame, and soy, to more complex recipes adding ginger, garlic, and scallions to a basic glaze.  I wanted to try something a bit different, but not too far out of the lane.  Since I like my ginger/coconut/pineapple rice, I wanted to complement that by adding crushed pineapple and ginger to the basic glaze.

*Visit our store to learn more about the variety of fish Alaska has to offer, such as Copper River king salmon, wild Alaskan halibut, wild Alaskan black cod (sablefish), and more.