How to Cook Kokanee - Kokanee Recipes - Hunter Angler Gardener Cook (2024)

FAQs

Is kokanee good eating? ›

Still, there are hardcore groups of anglers who target this landlocked, freshwater subspecies of the sockeye salmon. Great fighters and excellent table fare, biologically speaking, Kokanee salmon are also a beautiful, evolutionary wonder.

Distinguishing Kokanee from Chinook Salmon

Kokanee have more, densely spaced gill rakers than Chinook Salmon. This gill raker morphology is why Kokanee are regarded as efficient planktivores.

Kokanee is best eaten just before the spawning stage. Their flesh is the dazzling bright orange that many anglers long for, and it is richer in flavor than trout but softer than other salmon.

And that flesh is richer than most trout, a bit soft like salmon is, and hates being overcooked — although you cannot safely eat kokanee raw unless it has been frozen first for at least a week.

Fry the fish, two or three pieces at a time, in the hot oil until the coating is golden and fish begins to flake when tested with a fork, turning once. This takes about 3 or 4 minutes per batch. Drain the deep-fried fish on paper towels, flipping the fillets to drain both sides.

Early-run kokanee have additional stomach enzymes that help digest food allowing for more of the carotenoids (the pigment that gives kokanee their orange meat) to absorb throughout the muscle.

Baking or Roasting

Baking is done at a more moderate temperature (350) and roasting at a much higher temperature (400 to 500). Roasting is best for whole fish or very large fillets or steaks.

Try it with: Sole, flounder, salmon, or halibut. These species have thin, flavorful skin. Avoid tuna and swordfish. Sautéing is probably the easiest way to prepare fish.

Chinook: The largest (and often most expensive), the king or chinook is prized for its high-fat content and buttery texture. Sockeye: An oilier fish with deep red flesh, sockeye salmon has a stronger flavor and stands up well to grilling. Coho: Coho is milder and often lighter in color.

Kokanee salmon are more famous for their crimson red color and large sharp-toothed jaws as seen at the top of this page. That color and morphology only occurs just prior to spawning. For the majority of their life span, the kokanee are silver and have earned the nickname "silver bullet".

What is the best tasting salmon species? ›

Chinook Salmon/King Salmon

Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tschawytscha), also known as King salmon, is considered by many to be the best-tasting of the salmon bunch. This large variety has a high-fat content and corresponding rich flesh that ranges from white to a deep red color.

Kokanee salmon have a bright red flesh and make excellent tablefare.

Kokanee are land-locked sockeye salmon. This means that they do not travel to the ocean and return inland to spawn, instead they complete their entire life cycle in Lake Coeur d'Alene. Their life cycle is 4 years long.

"But, they will strike at something flashy," says Spateholts. "And, even though the fish have changed color, from silver to red, they are still good eating.

Kokanee, the best-selling lager in B.C., gains its particular character from the blend of Pacific Northwest hops. The beer has twice won brewing industry awards for its smooth, clean and lightly hopped flavour. It has an alcohol content of 5% abv.