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The Wall Street Journal via
Dow Jones
WILD SALMON IS SAID to taste a lot better than
the farmed variety and also to
contain fewer contaminants such as mercury. But
the wild vs. farmed distinction
is moot if wild salmon isn't available at your
local fish market.
Fish lovers, though, now have a growing option:
They can have a fish company
send frozen-packed wild salmon overnight straight
to their doorstep -- and
dinner plate.
We went online to order Alaskan king salmon and
find out if it was worth the
time and money. We knew that overnight delivery
of fish wouldn't come cheap, and
that we were taking our chances by buying fish
sight unseen. A single variety of
fish can vary in color, texture and taste, depending
on where the fish is from
and which processing company handled it.
We found four companies willing to send us salmon
in one- or two-pound orders,
but only after scrolling extensively through Web
sites promoting free or
inexpensive shipping for larger orders (say, five
pounds and up). We noticed
some variation in the fish's prices ($13.60 to
$27.95 a pound) among the
companies as well. Those prices can vary, too,
depending on the time of year you
order fish: One site that was charging $18.95
a pound in December charged $27.95
a pound for the same variety of fish in early
fall.
Most sites charge a flat or basic rate for nonfrozen
items (such as smoked or
canned fish), and a second type of pricing or
charge for perishable foods sent
overnight or via two-day shipping methods. The
whole process boils down to how
soon you want your fish and how much you are willing
to pay for it to arrive
when you want it.
Our orders came swaddled in dry ice or ice packs
within Styrofoam or cardboard
boxes, some of which were lined with Alaskan newspapers.
Generally, the fish was
still frozen all the way through. All orders were
accompanied by catalogs and
other extras such as a recipe book, a refrigerator
magnet, dog treats and a
tasty spice rub.
The real test was on the palate. We prepared
salmon two ways: oven-baked with
lemon and herbs, and grilled on the barbecue.
The salmon varied in color and fat
content as well as bone content, although this
last factor is predictable
because most fillets contain bones.
Ed's Kasilof
Seafoods provided us with the thickest cut and a fish
that was paler (nearly
white) and milder-tasting than we expect from salmon.
Though it was unusual,
Kasilof's fish was our favorite on the grill.
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