Sole of Discretion CIC - Wild Alaskan Keta Salmon Fillets

Our Keta comes from two different fisheries, one from indigenous fishers near the Kotzebue Sound to the north of the Bering sea, and the other from South East Alaska, Crawfish Bay. Both are caught by gill net. Keta hatch and live in fresh water for 3 -4 months before swimming out to sea where they stay for 3 to 4 years, before returning to the river they were born into spawn and die.
Kotzebue Keta is the only commercial fishery for wild salmon in North America above the Arctic Circle. The fisherman of Kotzebue are Inupiat inuit descendants. The fish are all caught in Kotzebue Sound that is very shallow. The two rivers the Kotzebue Keta spawn in are the Kobuk and Noatak. These Keta come from the most pristine waters in Alaska, The Arctic Circle. The fisherman are allowed to fish 10 hours a day, Sunday-Friday starting July 10 through August 31. All Fisherman take ice in the morning and deliver once, twice or three times a day depending on fishing.

The Crawfish Bay Keta is fished by members of Alaska’s oldest fishing cooperative, some of whom we met on our trip to Alaska in search of a like-minded fishing community. We met with the regulators in Juneau to be reassured that the fishery is well managed, and is one of the best examples in the world of a well-managed fishery. This fishery operates in an area where ‘enhanced’ fisheries from hatcheries operate. Hatcheries release 2 gram fry into the open sea to augment and supplement the wild catch. For a fisherman, it’s not possible to tell whether the keta is a hatchery fish, they look identical. We visited a hatchery while in Alaska, and while not completely comfortable with their existence, evidence suggests that since they started back in the 1970s, the increased catch of keta has not been at the expense of the eco system.

When cooking wild salmon, be careful not to over-cook it as it’s easy to do if you are used to cooking fatty farmed salmon – best to leave it a little pink in the centre.