Tuesday, October 07, 2008
Oregon Harbor
Commercial Fishing is still a major industry in Oregon although restrictions on salmon and crabbing mean that seasonal issues are very important in terms of the availability of the two most prized fruits of the fertile Oregon Coast - Dungeness Crab and Wild Salmon.
Dungeness crabs, with succulent white meat in the body and legs, was common food for native Americans but is not prized as a modest priced delicacy. The Dungeness Crab season generally begins about December 1 and although it goes on for several months the prices tend to get high later in the season. Also I've heard that the earliest crabs tend to be meatier though that may just be a fishing story.
Wild Salmon is generally preferred to the cheaper and far more easily available farmed version. Wild has a darker red color and is richer in taste and texture. At native American BBQs you can sometimes enjoy fresh salmon smoked in pits the ancestral fashion, skewered on sticks that are stuck into the ground next to the pits with the fish located above the flame.
Dungeness crabs, with succulent white meat in the body and legs, was common food for native Americans but is not prized as a modest priced delicacy. The Dungeness Crab season generally begins about December 1 and although it goes on for several months the prices tend to get high later in the season. Also I've heard that the earliest crabs tend to be meatier though that may just be a fishing story.
Wild Salmon is generally preferred to the cheaper and far more easily available farmed version. Wild has a darker red color and is richer in taste and texture. At native American BBQs you can sometimes enjoy fresh salmon smoked in pits the ancestral fashion, skewered on sticks that are stuck into the ground next to the pits with the fish located above the flame.
