Fresh wild salmon lands at Teterboro Costco: Try it with tomatoes, fresh herbs

Fresh wild Sockeye Salmon from Alaska's Copper River, right, was offered today at Costco Wholesale in Teterboro next to trays of farmed salmon, left. The color and taste of fresh wild salmon can't be matched by its farmed cousins.

Fresh wild Alaskan Sockeye Salmon with a reduction of organic diced tomatoes, red wine and lemon juice, and fresh herbs.

-- HACKENSACK, N.J.

By VICTOR E. SASSON

EDITOR

Two and a half weeks after Alaska's Copper River opened for the season, fillets of fresh wild sockeye salmon went on sale today at Costco Wholesale in Teterboro.

If the past is any guide, the Teterboro Costco will offer fresh wild sockeye, coho and king salmon from the United States and Canada until October.

That's roughly four months of enjoying one of the world's greatest fish for eating.

I bought a 1.7 pound skin-on sockeye salmon fillet ($16.99 a pound), added a little sea salt and cooked seven serving pieces on a preheated stove-top grill over a medium-high flame for a total of eight minutes, turning them once.

I topped the fish with a reduction of organic diced tomatoes, red wine, lemon juice and seasonings, and threw on chopped fresh mint, oregano and rosemary from my garden.

Just outstanding. As good as I remember from last year. As the weeks go by, the price of fresh wild salmon is expected to go down to around $10 a pound.

The sockeye I bought today in Teterboro was $2 more a pound than at a Costco in Alaska last week.

Sugary yogurt, pesto with fish, bargain Italian

My stove-top grill straddles two gas burners, and I use spray oil before adding the fish skin-side down.

Other wild fish offered at Costco today included, clockwise from top, Icelandic Cod ($7.99 a pound), Ahi Tuna ($13.99 a pound), Monk Fish ($9.99 a pound) and Pacific Halibut ($19.99 a pound), not shown.

Quick-cooking fresh wild Ocean Perch fillets ($5.49 a pound) also were available at the Teterboro warehouse. 

Whole Ocean Perch at the Super H Mart in Ridgefield on Sunday.

Two of the instant coupons available to Costco members in Teterboro until June 25 are $2.30 off on two 40-ounce jars of Victoria White Linen Marinara (about $3.25 a jar), above, and $4 off Dannon Oikos no-fat Blended Greek Yogurt, which has only 6 grams of sugar per 5.3-ounce container. That's 18 containers for $8.99 or about 50 cents each.

DETAILS: The Costco Wholesale at 2 Teterboro Landing Drive, in the Teterboro Landing Shopping Center off Route 46, is open 7 days. Weekday hours are 10 a.m. to 8:30 p.m. You don't have to be a member to use the Costco Gas Station in Teterboro.

Eating Out & Eating In: Spicy Malaysian Fish, Ahi Tuna Salad, Salsa-Poached Cod

A FISH CALLED DELICIOUS: At Penang Malaysian & Thai Cuisine, 334 N. Main St. in Lodi, we were wowed by Curry Fish with Okra, a whole red snapper that was deep fried and served in a spicy sauce made with coconut milk ($30.99). UPDATE: This restaurant has closed.

MEATLESS STRING BEANS: Our vegetable side dish was String Beans in a Belacan Sauce, a spicy Malaysian shrimp paste ($12.99). A bowl of white rice was $1, and a bowl of brown rice was $1.50.

THAI SOUPS: We started with two soups we've enjoyed at Wondee's Fine Thai Food & Noodles in Hackensack, Seafood Tom Yum Soup, above, and Wonton Soup, below (each are $5.99 for small).

FINE-DINING PRICES: At Penang, dinner for two totaled nearly $75, including tax and a 15% tip. We took home leftover fish and string beans.

TV AND MUSIC AT SAME TIME: Penang has a bar and three dining rooms. Unfortunately, since our visit, the restaurant closed. The original Penang remains open in East Hanover.

HOOK, LINE AND SINKER: Ginger Crusted Ahi Tuna stars in a chopped salad of organic baby greens, napa cabbage, green beans, red peppers and seasoned wontons in a spicy Thai basil vinaigrette ($18.95) at Bazille, the full-service fine-dining restaurant and bar on the lower level of Nordstrom at the Garden State Plaza shopping mall in Paramus.

BAZILLE BURGER: Freshly ground beef, balsamic-roasted onions, sharp white cheddar cheese, tomato, and peppercorn aioli on an artisan roll  ($14.25).

NO KIDDING: The entrance to the restaurant is in the kids and baby department.

THIS FISH CAN DANCE: Skinless-and-boneless Icelandic cod from Costco Wholesale in Teterboro ($7.99 a pound) poaches in under 10 minutes in a 16-ounce jar of Salsa Roja from Whole Foods Market in Paramus ($2.99). I served the fish over garlic-mashed organic sweet potatoes.

COOKING MEDIUM AND SAUCE: I added the juice of a lemon to the salsa before bringing it to a boil in a covered pan. I seasoned the fish with a little salt and crushed red Aleppo pepper, below. The sauce can be used over rice, quinoa or pasta.

OMELET WITH SALSA: I used leftover Salsa Roja in an egg-white omelet with a slice of reduced-fat Swiss cheese, above and below.

FILLING BREAKFAST: Egg-white omelets can be stuffed -- or in this case overstuffed -- with smoked wild salmon, pesto, grated cheese and other ingredients, and served over organic quinoa with black-eyed peas.

ORGANIC WHOLE WHEAT PASTA: Whole Foods' 365 Everyday Value Organic Whole Wheat Pasta from Italy comes in a 1-pound package for only $1.49. Here, I dressed pasta shells in a bottled red sauce with organic diced tomatoes, anchovies, sardines, red wine and seasonings.

FAMILY FISH DINNER IN A PAN: A Cod & Vegetable Medley takes about 10 minutes to assemble and about 15 minutes to cook in a preheated 400-degree oven.

BED OF FRESH SPINACH: I start with a large rectangular pan lined with parchment paper or foil, and a bed of fresh spinach drizzled with extra-virgin olive oil. I cut up the fillet into serving pieces, season them with Asian Indian spices, squeeze lemon juice over the fish; and scatter pitted olives, Asian mushrooms, capers, grated cheese and chopped fresh tomato. The pesto goes when the pan comes out of the oven.

CROSTINI: Toasted baguette halves drizzled with olive oil and topped with organic diced tomatoes and grated cheese, which melts in a couple of minutes under the broiler.

PASTA TWO WAYS: Organic Whole Wheat Fusilli from Whole Foods Market dressed in Kirkland Signature Basil Pesto from Costco, top, and in a bottled red sauce with organic diced tomatoes, anchovies and sardines. Cooking times on Whole Foods pasta boxes are unreliable. 

USE BY TODAY: My Kirkland Signature Organic Eggs from Costco (2 dozen for $5.99) had a use-by date of today, so I made a 7-egg, kitchen-sink frittata with chopped olives, chopped fresh garlic, mushrooms, sweet pepper and sliced plum tomatoes, above and below.

PESTO FINISH: I moved the pan from the top of the stove to the oven, where it finished under the broiler, and added pesto when the frittata was cooling on the counter.

See: Our first dinner at Penang

-- VICTOR E. SASSON