Alaska Uncovered Podcast

Five generations of Commercial Fishing in Alaska and Fish Tips with Sena Wheeler (Alaska Stories Series)

• Jennie Thwing Flaming and Jay Flaming • Episode 151

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 Welcome to the Alaska Uncovered Podcast with me, your host, Jennie Thwing Flaming, my occasional co-host and full-time husband, Jay, and I bring you accurate, helpful, and entertaining information about Alaska Travel and life in Alaska.





   Hi everyone. I have added a bunch of extra time to my calendar for my Zoom 30 minute planning sessions between this Saturday, December 6th and Tuesday, December 16th. So I've put in like triple the number of appointments that I normally do because I really want to give those of you who either just celebrated a holiday with family or friends.

And hatched a plan for Alaska, or you're about to do that in December and you wanna get some advice, some feedback on your plan. You wanna tell me where you're stuck and let me help you. This is a great opportunity to do that just in this week and a half or so, period. And after December 16th, I'm not gonna do sessions again until January because in the second half of December, nobody really wants to do that.

So check it out. If you've been on the fence or you haven't found a time that works for you, check it out. The link is in the show notes. It's too long of a URL on my automated calendar system to read it all out. So you'll have to go in the show notes, click on that link and head over there.

Alright, let's get to our interview with Sena Wheeler, which is all about fish. Yum

my guest today is Ena Wheeler. Sena is in a fifth generation fishing family in Alaska, and she is here today to share a little bit about her story, her family story, and a little bit about Alaska fishing.

So welcome Sena. Thank you for being here. 

Thanks so much for having me. 

Can you start by just giving yourself, giving a little bit of an introduction to everyone and telling everybody how you got to Alaska, how you got into the Alaska fishing industry. 

Uh, yes. It's a matter of how far back should we go, right?

I say fifth generation fishing family because those are the, the relatives I can name. But my, my parents always joke because we probably go back, um, 300 generations back in Norway. So, um, my grandfather immigrated from Norway, um, when. He was, uh, young and his brothers did too. And that was about in the 1940s.

And they landed in Ballard, um, Seattle area. And at that time, uh, fishing is what they knew they fished back in Norway. And so fishing's what they knew, they all got boats, long liners. You know, as each brother came over, they would get another boat and, um, they did halibut fishing. Up in Alaska, and actually they fished the entire, west coast back then.

We have the logs and they fished all the way up from Alaska all the way down to Mexico, which is really wild. Wow. But, they were pretty dedicated guys. Yeah. Um, but they, they, um, immigrated to, um, Ballard, Seattle, which is kind of a, was at the time and kind of still is a hotbed for Norwegian immigration.

So it's kind of a little, little Norway there. And we keep doing it. So my husband, um, my husband is the son-in-law, so he, joined, uh, learned to fish on my dad's boat and, kind of learned the family tradition. And my dad is also a son-in-law, so he, he came the same way. He married my mom, married into fishing, so, mm-hmm.

What's interesting about our fifth generation is people kind of assume it goes through the. The fishermen. Yes. But it's actually, uh, multi-generations of fishermen, wives, we just go find a fisherman. 

Yeah. You can't, you can't turn away to find a fisherman. Oh, that's so funny. So when you, when you, uh, married your husband or like when your dad married your mom, is there like a.

Kind of understand what you're marrying into here besides me, kind of conversation? Or do they usually already know that by then? 

Well, it's kind of interesting 'cause neither of them fished. Before. So it's more like, well, now that you're part of the family, here's kind of what we do. If you wanna give it a shot, 

that's so great.

I love it. 

They call it giving a chance in fishing. So if you're a greenhorn, you've never gone fishing before the ca, the skipper would give you a chance. So they were basically each given a chance and you know, it took, so 

I love that. That's so. Wonderful. So Sena, can you share a little bit about, currently now with the members of your family that are currently fishing where, I'm not talking about like your secret places, but like generally what parts of Alaska are you in when you're fishing, and what type of fish are you catching?

And then who, I think it's interesting for people to know. This is a big part of Alaska's economy. So like what happens? How does that fish, I know this is multiple questions, but how then do the fish get to market after you catch them? What's that process like? 

Okay. Yes, you're right. That's a big question.

Um, we traditionally fish halibut and black cod, so that's long lining. Long lining is on a little bit of a bigger boat, so it's almost as big as a crab boat. It might usually has. Five guys, although these days, um, people are doing it on a little bit smaller boats, but long lining is deeper. Um, that halibut and black cod are, um, couple, you know, several miles offshore and you know, it can be.

Miles deep. . Fish with a big long line, hence the name. Long lining. Yes. Bigger boats. Um, and that's what my family always did. And, um, my husband Rich has also integrated, we, he also fishes for salmon. So we do Copper River salmon. Okay. And that's out of Cordova, Alaska. Okay. And so that really has grounded us since we've been doing, the, I should say, the long lining we did out of.

Most you have quota for areas, so like certain boats, fish, certain areas 'cause that's where they have quota for. 

Yep. 

So we fished out of, Seward a lot, which is near Anchorage for long lining. Um, but you have a little bit more free reign where you wanna sell to. Um, there, you know, all long liners, well, all salmon too, you know, really very independent.

They're, they're, every boat is basically like a. Small, independent business. Yeah. And they can choose where they sell to. 

Yep. 

Um, but now that we do salmon, we're really grounded in Cordova, Alaska, which we love. Cordova as a small town. No roads in. 

Yeah. 

Makes it unique. Um, you can take your own boat, you can take your fishing boat over there, or you can take the ferry or a plane.

Yep. And so we really love it there. We've been doing fishing out of there. Since our youngest was born, so that's 14 years that we've been doing that. Awesome. And so, um. Long, I guess I, I don't even remember if I'm answering your question now, but since we really kind of bought into that fishery, we started doing the Copper River, that's when we started, direct marketing and kind of realizing that, hey, we're catching.

Um, the very best fish on the planet. 

Yeah, 

we should just let people know and, you know, sell it. So that's kind of where we, we, we do now we're doing all the way from catching, and then in the middle of that, somewhere in the middle there, we, we bought a small custom processing facility in Cordova, which really grounded us there.

So we're doing processing, um, catching processing, shipping, and the whole nine yards. 

So do you, when you ship your fish, does it. Does it come from Cordova? 

So what we do that works really well is 'cause my husband's up there, uh, six months out of the year and he is living and working in Cordova and, uh, we live in Washington state.

And, um, uh. You know, as most direct marketers are people that catch fish and, and ship it. No, it's very hard to get out straight out of Alaska. Yeah. Cordova is almost impossible because there's no roads. 

Yeah, 

yeah, 

yeah. It's definitely a hard thing. So we, what we do is we, we specialize in, um, we're not just chopping the heads off.

Like some plants up there, but we are, um, doing a really high quality value added. So we're cutting into six ounce portions and we're vacuum sealing and freezing up in Alaska in our, in our facility. And then we send that really finished, vacuum sealed frozen product. Um, down to Alaska, on or down, excuse me, down to Washington on air cargo.

So we, we fly it down. 

Yep. 

And then we have a warehouse down here. So down in Washington State we're packing boxes for our online sales. So we're just, you know, it's a 20 portion sockeye box. We just counting out 20 portions. So down here it's just a really simple operation and we can ship overnight for.

Um, the whole lower 48. So it actually, we do it because it works for us, but it actually really has worked out, which is really nice. 

Yeah, that's awesome. Thank you for explaining that because I think, you know, when I'm working as a, a tour director, people often have questions about the fishing industry and like, okay, so you see a fishing boat out.

Wherever you are. Let's say it's Seward, Valdez, Homer, wherever, um, and or you're out on a wheel watching tour and you see, you know, a fishing boats and there's different kinds of fishing boats and people always have a lot of. Questions about that. And so I love that you explained that and listeners just know that what Cena's describing is the way that a lot of people do it, but not everybody, like she was saying, there is, there are lots of different places and types of fish and, and ways that people interact with the market.

So thank you so much for, for sharing about that. That's awesome. 

Yeah, and it's an interesting part of Alaska is sometimes you're, you look at these boats and you look, you're at these real working docks and you're like, great, you know, I'd love to eat some of that fish right now. And, um, it's hard when you're at a real working dock when a lot of that fish goes into containers and is shipped.

Immediately out, 

right? It's like, yes. 

How do you get your hands on it in Alaska? And that can be a challenge also, um, at our processing facility be because in a cordova, we, it's usually the, the big guys, so, you know, Trident and, and big, big seafood processors where, you really can't get your hands on it, which is frustrating for visitors, uh, even residents.

Yeah. 

And so we have a little walk-in, um. Front office with some frozen seafood that you can just buy right out of the case because 

Oh, sweet. 

I've had people just stop us in town, you know, Hey, where do you, how do I get some of that fish? 

Yes, yes, yes. Yeah, I think that is really true. That is also something people ask a lot is like, Hey, can I just go down here and buy some fish?

And it's like sometimes, you know, but mm-hmm. Um, you gotta figure out how to get it home and, and all of that, so, 

yeah. 

Yeah. 

Yeah. That's the hard part. 

Yeah. Okay. So I know Sena, that in addition to fishing, that you're also a nutritionist. Is that right? 

Yeah, so I have my, um, degree in nutrition and food science, and then I have a master's degree in food science where I, um, studied, um, Omega-3 content in west coast, Alba cor tuna.

I was down in Oregon at the time, so, um, 

cool. 

Yeah, I've always been involved with Phish. 

Yeah. And so I'd, I'd love to know a little bit about how, I mean, I can guess if you specialized in omega threes, like where that interest came from, but can you talk a little bit about like how you kind of got into that?

Field into the nutrition, the food science field. 

Yeah, I think, well my, my dad was a fisherman and my mom owned a health food store, so, um, it's not hard to imagine where I got it. 

It is not. 

When I went into college, my, I had, you know, oh, let's see. My first idea was, oh, I was gonna be a airline pilot, you know, fly airplanes, which was, oh, great.

I really love the mechanics. I love the classes. And then I flew a plane and was like, oh yeah, no, I don't like to fly. 

Yeah, that's kind of a barrier. Yeah, 

I don't even like to drive a car with a bunch of people in it. It's too much responsibility. So anyways, you know, sometimes you gotta figure out what you don't want.

And it was like, how about I just try something that, you know, feels really natural? And so I took some nutrition classes just because I enjoyed that and I was an athlete as well. So it just felt like, you know, it's like when you find that thing and you're like. Oh, right. This is a job because I just like doing this.

So, um, for me that's how nutrition was. And then,, going into grad school, it was just one of these flukes, you know, I, I, I wanted to go transfer to Oregon State. Really good. Food science program and, and I didn't really know what I was doing. Yes. And, I, somebody goes, oh, well you have to have an advisor take you on.

There's this whole process, you know, you have to, they have to take you on and, and all this stuff. And I'm, oh, okay, so I'm looking through the website or whatever, and. And it, in the seafood science there, there, there was just a simple ad or, you know, posting, like looking for somebody that's comfortable on a boat and can study seafood and all this stuff.

And I was, I just sent an email like, oh yeah, I fished on my dad's boat in, in Alaska in the summer times. And, and I would be really comfortable with that. And so he took me on and I, I had my entire master's program, um, you know, full ride. With stipend for that work. 

That's 

awesome. So it really felt like, well, you know, it wasn't the plan necessarily, but, um, that's how Phish for me has kind of, there's several ways like that in my life where it's like, well, I guess this is the right path.

So, 

yeah. Yeah, I can see. That you being like, oh yeah, this is basically perfect. 

Sounds easy. 

That's so cool. Yeah. That's awesome. Yeah. Love it. Okay, so can you, I think. I think that most people know that fish is really good for you. I, I doubt that would come as a surprise to people, but could you share a little bit more about why fish and maybe in particular, um, wild Alaska fish, uh, is so why is it that it's so good for us and in and in what way?

I would, I'd love to know more about that. 

Well, I can tell you my personal three reasons for why to eat wild and, um, cool wild fish and espec, specifically wild fish in Alaska. And everybody does kind of know, oh, it's healthy for you, but you know, why, what, what, what is it doing for you? So, totally. Um, number one reason why wild, I would say is um, it's.

It's the best. I mean, number one, it's just going to taste the best. So when it comes to just taste and texture of seafood, seafood, it matters. You know, it's delicate. It's um, um, the quality matters. Every little thing about it matters. And when you eat wild fish that's actually swimming out in the, um, ocean, yeah, it's going to taste better.

Um. Taste, texture, all of that will be better. And then the health, like you mentioned, um, it's eating the natural diet that it's meant to eat, so it's not raised on pellets or in pens or having, um, you know, weird fish diseases. Right? You kind of can, you can tell where I land on some wild versus farm, but yes, um, it, it truly.

It's getting the appropriate exercise and the appropriate food. And so when it comes to things like omega threes, we just kind of know that they're good for us, but they are super important because our body doesn't make Omega-3 fatty acids. We have to consume them. And um, in wild fish they are in the appropriate ratio like Omega-3 to omega six and that kind of thing.

And, um. So you want your omega threes for various reasons. They can help with, uh, a lot of things. I mean, omega threes can help with your, um. They, they fuel the brain. Mm-hmm. So it's kind of brain food. So with our kids and growing up and you know, they have a big test or something, we always go, we'll have some omega threes.

That's brain food. It's the, it crosses the blood brain barrier or something. You know, where your brain is like, yes, thank you. That's what I needed. 

Yes. 

So good for your brain, good for your mood also, um. It can help just elevate your mood. So sometimes in those like midwinter blues, like you need some omega threes, um, just good regulates the body.

So, um, good for weight maintenance. Um. Skin just all around, um, and anti-inflammatory. Mm-hmm. So omega threes are just one of those, you know, all around really good things. And then really nice thing is, you know, when you're talking about like, um, copper River, salmon is for fish, it's like a lot like beef.

The fat content is what, um, kind of. It's like the grade A is the higher fat content. It makes it better, but for fish it's like, the higher fat content makes it taste better. 

Mm-hmm. 

But it also makes it healthier. And so it's a real win-win on that. And then of course, um, fish is also, I, you know, these days everybody's talking about protein.

Yeah. And um, fish is also, I mean, zero carbs, it's like over. Over 20, you know, grams of protein per serving. 

Yeah, 

it's incredible when you look at the nutritional content of, of fish, and of course it varies be by species, but, salmon, it's incredible. And then you have all the micronutrients of course, too.

So it's, it's really and truly, you know, very healthy for you. And it's great when it tastes good too. 

Yeah. Right, right. Things that are good for you and tastes good are super helpful. And you know, I have found, so I've had a lot of. Clients who like are, I'm helping them plan their trip to Alaska, or like people who are on my tour or whatever.

And sometimes people are kind of anxious if they're like, what if I don't like seafood? You know? And then I reassure them that, of course there are many other things to eat in Alaska. But I also usually say like, I'm not into telling people to eat foods they don't like, that's not my thing. But I do often say.

You know, sometimes when people have really high quality fish 

mm-hmm. 

For the first time that's prepared. Well, it is. Sometimes they really love it, so. You know, 

hundred percent. Maybe you consider giving 

it 

a chance, 

you know, 

that would be your time to try it. And that's honestly, you know, we sell fish, so we're on the opposite spectrum.

But oftentimes when I'm talking to people about fish, they're trying to recreate that one time when they went to Alaska and they had halibut at this really good restaurant. Yeah. And that's the experience that they're trying to recreate when they order from us. You know, it's like. I know it can be really good.

Yes, I've had it 

in the last time. I know it's possible 

that one time, and so I agree a hundred percent and that's actually something I say to people often. You know, if they go, oh, I don't like fish. It's like, well, I mean. If you, maybe you'd need to try some really good fish. 

Yes. Yeah. It's worth a try. 

Yeah.

For, 

oh, I love that. Cool. Okay, so I know you have teenagers. 

Yes. 

And so I'd love to know, and again, not just for kids, but like for someone who's like, how do I get my kids to eat fish? Or how do I get my. Non fish eating spouse to eat fish. Mm-hmm. What advice do you have for that? 

Yeah, actually that's really similar to what we're talking about.

I mean, I was, again, start, even if it's kids, I mean spouse for sure, but people don't realize, even, even kids, you know, trying really good fish does help. So if, if you're kind of like. Feeding your kids the bottom of the barrel, like what you kind of find at the grocery store. Like, ah, maybe they'll like this.

Maybe there's a reason they don't like it. 

Yeah. 

Try some really good, high quality, wild Alaskan seafood. For one thing, it's going to taste really fresh, really clean. You know, like halibut has this almost sweet flavor. When you're, when you're eating the real thing, it is going to be better. Even for kids.

I have a lot of friends who come over. You know, because we fish, one thing I learned from my parents is if people come over, they're gonna expect to eat fish. You know? Right. That's what they want. That's part of the experience. They want you to cook up, you know, some really nice fish for them, which is great.

And, and often, you know, we have young kids and, and people bring their kids over and they, they kind of want, you know, I, I just wanna warn you. I, you know, my kid might not eat the fish and I'm just like. You know what I, I'm gonna worry about that. Zero. 

Yeah. Yeah. 

We're not gonna pre-program it. We're not gonna talk about it.

And when I serve the fish, I usually talk about, especially for kids, I talk about how Rich caught it. You know, this is really special fish for us. And. Even pictures. I mean, on every portion we have a picture of Rich. So getting that backstory, it's like taking a kid to a farm. I mean, having that backstory on catching the fish who caught it and things like that really make a difference.

If they are, you know. I really like to be cooking and having the kids kind of run around, have them help out a little bit, that makes a big difference. And then just serving it with pride, not serving it and going, oh gosh, I don't know if you're gonna like this, but just serving it with pride and I put it on their plate and then don't even watch.

Yes. Just don't make a big deal out of it. 

Don't make a big deal about it. 

Yeah. 

Yeah. And oftentimes they'll try it. I have found, black cod, it's also called stable fish, is a really, it's kind of a high-end fish. You'll see it in in high-end restaurants. A lot of times you'll see like a miso, black cod, very kind of fancy, high in omega threes.

It's got this amazing silky texture. But I serve it to kids a lot because it's really. Moist and silky. And I find that really what a lot of kids don't like is dried out fish. 

Yeah. 

Which I don't either. 

No, adults don't like it either. It's gross. 

Yeah. 

Yeah. 

So, you know, just making sure it's just moist and delicious and, and if they can just try it on their own, you look over and the, and it's all, it's all gone, you know, on their plate, which is, which is kind of fun.

And so that's my advice, number one. And then also just keep trying. There's so many. Species of fish. There's so, so many types of fish and there's so many different recipes. You know, if they don't like it one day, just just throw it in and try it another time. In another way, another type of fish Don't make it like, oh my gosh, you didn't like fish in general.

You just didn't like that fish that day. Yeah, yeah. In that recipe. 

Yeah. Yeah. That's totally true. I love that. Okay, so, um, I'd also love to know, I mean, something that I ask all of my guests is, what's your favorite restaurant in whatever year? Place is right? Mm. And I know you have, you know, you talked about Cordova and Anchorage and Seward.

I know that you're moving around and going to different places. So I am wondering if you're not cooking it yourself and you're gonna go to a restaurant in Alaska, where is your favorite place to have seafood? 

Oh, okay. We do eat a lot of it ourselves on our boat. Yes, 

yes, yes, 

I would. I'm my first answer.

Ray's boathouse in Seward, um, 

yeah. 

Is kind of a special place for us. My, my dad al sold fish in Seward and he would always go there and, he'd have the, the El Ritas, the Longliner would be parked out front and he started selling them black cod. And I think that his black cod was the first black cod that they, um, started serving.

Mm-hmm. And he actually gave them, um, our family recipe, which is, um. Pretty simple soy sauce and ginger, maybe a little garlic. Mm-hmm. That's it. You just marinate that and cook it. So he, he sold them his, his black cod. Just, and this was back, back in the late eighties when black cod was ju kind of just getting going.

Mm-hmm. As a fishery, um, as something that Americans were eating. It was all going to Japan at the, you know, the beginning. And it was like, oh wait, this is really delicious. Maybe we should try it. 

Yeah, 

so he, you know, started selling his, his black co to them and gave them the recipe. So they put it on the menu as I'll read a black cod.

And, so that was always a real point of pride for him, mostly because it was a, a place that he frequented anyways, you know? And so it was really fun for him to have that on the menu. And we still have a copy of that. So that's the place I think of for 

That's so fun. I love that.

Well before we wrap up, I definitely wanna ask you about. How people can buy your fish and like any other tips you have about buying and preparing fish.

But before that, is there anything else about sort of the commercial fishing industry in Alaska or kind of family owned fishing boats and fishing companies like yours that you would like for? Potential visitors up to know about before we move towards those last questions. 

You know, I, um, I would just lastly talk about sustainability because I know it's on everybody's mind.

Yeah. And, when you talk about wild, you know, a. Wild fish. People do tend to, you know, they wanna make sure they're doing the right thing and they wanna buy the right thing and they wanna support the proper industry and they don't want to eat the last wild salmon if that's not what they should be doing.

Right. 

I really like to let people know that it, it's, it's actually an important industry to invest in. So investing in wild salmon, you're gonna get the best fish, of course.

And the healthiest, like we talked about. But it's also really well managed fisheries. So the fisheries in Alaska are all, um, you know, Alaska has it in their constitution. Sustainability is in their constitution because they know that's their industry, right. They want it to continue. 

Yep. 

So it sounds like a commercial when I say, you know, look for wild,

but really look for Alaska because you know, anything in Alaska, they don't allow any fish farming. So if it says yep, if it was caught in Alaska, it's wild. And it's sustainable because that's how they do it. Um, and. When you invest in wild, sustainably caught fish from Alaska, really you are investing in the whole, the whole community.

So if you think of these places like Cordova on the Copper River. The Copper River is. This fish are so special because this river is truly still pristine and people that haven't been to Alaska, it's hard for them to imagine.

So when you invest in that fish, you're investing in the community, in these independent fishing families, but also in the whole system that keeps that river clean for those fish to return because those fish are so important and so valuable. And so just to look at the flip side, you know, people stop buying wild because, for whatever reason, oh, we're just gonna save the fish stocks, you know, and buy farmed or whatever.

That whole system would. Would unravel. Yeah, right. Yeah, yeah. If those fish weren't valuable, then what are we then the, we wouldn't have any industry to protect these rivers, so, yep. The next thing you would see is mining and deforestation and just all these other things, and those that, those river systems, those waterways wouldn't be able to be protected like they are.

So it's just a way of thinking about, you know, I say eat well. Eat wild to save wild. Mm-hmm. And I really mean it. Yeah. When you, when you go ahead and spend a little bit more on that wild salmon, you're really, um, investing in the systems that protect that wild salmon. And so it does, it does help people to think about it that way because otherwise, you know, people just aren't sure if it's the right thing to be doing.

Yeah. Yeah. I really appreciate you sharing that. I think that's so. Important. And that's really great to get your perspective on that. So that makes me think of another question, if someone is say, at a grocery store at, at like a big store and let's just say somewhere in the US like, like Costco or Walmart or Kroger, whatever.

If, if fish that's for sale is labeled Alaska Wild, is that, is that like regulated? Like can you feel confident about that? Or can anybody put Alaska Wild fish on their. Package. 

I I, if it says Alaska, that's, to me, that's, that's a trust. If it says Alaska, then it should be from Alaska. And if it's from Alaska, you know, it's wild.

Yep. And sustainably caught. Yeah. And so, um, I tell people, look for wild. 

Yep. 

Um. Look for UUSA. Yeah. So in the United States we have regulations and laws Yes. Around fishing and catching and sustainability. And that's important. Yeah. Um, and then look for Alaska. So if you can see, I, I would say Alaska is gonna tell you all three of those things.

Yep. 

If it says Alaska, you know, it was domestically caught and you know, it's wild. So. 

Yep. 

I think that's a, a huge trust symbol to look for. And I'm not just saying that 'cause I catch we sell wild fish. 

Yeah, well I've always, I've actually, I didn't know the answer to that. I've always wondered about that.

If you're like, you know, buying fish. Somewhere for whatever reason is like, okay, this, this package of frozen salmon filets at Costco says it's Alaska wild caught salmon. Like 

mm-hmm. 

Is it? 

Yeah. Yeah. And I would, and, and, um, you know, being as specific as possible. So for wild salmon in general, I mean. The, the more specific they are is kind of the more exact they are.

So if they, you know, if it says Bristol Bay Salmon, then you know it's from Bristol Bay, you know, the, the more information really the better I'd say. Yep. 

Yeah. And I know like when Copper River salmon are in season, you know, other than like. You are processing them and, and shipping them frozen. But like also a lot of restaurants will get that fish, you know, and then they'll always say, this is Copper River 

Salmon.

Right. So Exactly. If it's specific all the way down to the river, like Copper River, it's like you get to, you know, a lot of things, you know, it's from the Copper River, you know, it's wild, you know, it's Alaskan, I, you know, everything else, um, follows. So, so that specificity really means something. 

Yeah. Love it.

Okay, so Cena, it's all great. If like someone's gonna go and buy wild fish at Costco. Good. Awesome. Yay. I do that too. But if someone wants to get some of your truly amazing, like total small business, start to finish salmon, how do they do that? 

So we have a website, um, cena c.com, S-E-N-A-S-E a.com, and we still are fish.

And that's, you know, basically way back when we were, we were fishing and I was telling, you know, part of my studies was onboard handling techniques in, correlated with, uh, with the. Sensory and things like that. So we've always, you know, handled our catch really carefully. And so, um, having that very best fish, you know, it's like, it's the very best fish you can find on the planet and then handle the very best way.

So if you're looking for the best of the best, that's what we have for you, um, at C Sea and we ship, to the lower 48. . We ship nationally, so we're kind of all about like, like you said, like when I can find Copper River or when it's in the stores. Well, we have Copper River Sockeye available almost year round on our site.

So we specialize in premium frozen, um. Fish. Yeah. And we're just trying to get that high quality fish that people just can't find anywhere else. 

Yeah, love that. And I'll put the link for that in the show notes, by the way. So listeners, if you're like, Ooh, I gotta get my hands on this, you can find it there.

Okay, so Cena, um, can we talk a little bit about how to like handle frozen fish if you're gonna prepare it at home, like. You. Let's say someone gets a box of your fa, it's gonna get shipped overnight, you said? Mm-hmm. Right? Mm-hmm. So you get it the next day, so it's still frozen, 

right? 

Um, so obviously you can put it in your freezer until you're ready to use it, but when you're ready to prepare it, how do you recommend.

Defrosting it and maybe as well, just like if someone was gonna cook, let's say salmon, copper over salmon, copper over sockeye for the very first time, how would you recommend preparing it? Like starter? 

Right. Starter package. That's a, that's a big question because, you know, I know that a lot of people, that's, that's their big concern is they just don't have a lot of confidence cooking fish, you know?

Yeah. In their own kitchen. How, what am I gonna, what in the world am I gonna do with this when it shows up? 

Right? Yes. 

And so we do try to keep it really easy and give a lot of guidance. So that's one reason. Um, we ship it frozen, and I prefer frozen. I know that there's a big, fresh, frozen whole thing, and I say like, if you're living by the ocean, great.

Eat, eat it fresh. Yeah. But if you don't, then. Choose frozen because 

yeah, 

the, you know, the time temperature, I mean, it's stopped way up in Alaska, 

right? 

And it, we've frozen it professionally up in Alaska and keep it frozen. And so when it's in your freezer, it gives you, you know, you get to defrost it when you want.

Which is really handy. And I defrost it right before I'm gonna cook it, so I don't, I don't even like it. Some people put it in the fridge overnight and that's acceptable. But I find that anytime in the, at refrigerated temperatures, basically you start that clock again, that time temperature clock. 

Ah, yeah.

And so if it's sitting in your fridge, you know you're defrosting it, but it's sitting and then, oh, I couldn't cook it tonight. Maybe I'll get to it tomorrow. You really are ticking down that clock. Yep. So I like to defrost my fish actually right when I start cooking dinner. Um, 

okay. 

Because they're.

Individually frozen in six ounce portions. I just kind of, you know, pull out how many I need, put it in cold water while I'm sort of pulling out the rest of the meal. And it only takes half an hour, 45 minutes to, um, defrost. 

Cool. 

And so then I'm, I'm simply just gonna cut them out of the bag and I rinse 'em in cold water.

That's, that's one of these things. Not everybody does it, but, um. I always have, I just rinse it in cold water. And that's just to get any scales or anything off because you know this is a real natural product, 

right? Yes. 

Any, whatever. Just give it a quick rinse and then I always, um, dry it with a paper towel, so I'm gonna rinse it, but I'm also gonna dry it.

And that is. An important step. If you leave the water on there, it's gonna be kind of waterlogged or it's not gonna crisp up. Right. So you want it to be really dry and then I'm gonna salt it. So I'm gonna put a little bit of salt on that flesh right away and let that salt kind of come into the flesh. I would do that with meat too, but it, it kind of, um, uh, comes into the flesh and it's gonna just add a little bit of flavor.

Mm-hmm. 

Confirms it up a bit. And so I'm gonna start like that. Now. I've got my fish on a paper towel, a little bit of salt on it, and I'm just gonna get the rest of the meal going. Maybe some rice. Maybe some veggies. And then I've been baking fish a lot. I mean, you can barbecue it. That's, I do that a lot in the summer, I suppose.

Mm-hmm. 

Um, and when I barbecue, I just put it, um, skin down on the grill, close the grill. 10 or 15 minutes and I don't even flip it. That flipping. It's hard. Of course. Yeah. Fish is hard that way and I've just found it's just not necessary. Yeah. And if I put a drizzle, you know, I might make an olive oil, you know, like a, a little sauce, right?

So it might do a little olive oil, maybe a little butter, maybe a little lemon, garlic. Yeah. Um, cilantro drizzle that on. So if you're gonna put it in the, on the grill, you're not flipping it, you're not kind of, it's, it has that sauce on it. Yeah. I might do the same in the oven. I usually cook it at three 50 and it's really gonna be 10 to 15, 12.

Yeah. I would say 12 to 15 minutes. And the, the most important thing is that you don't overcook it. 

Yeah. 

And that's the biggie. And you know, all of our fish is sushi quality. So when it's. Frozen to the proper time temperature like we do. 

Right. 

That's what makes it sushi quality. And that's one thing that people misinterpret, but it needs to be frozen.

That kills all the pathogens. 

Yep. 

And that doesn't mean you need to eat it raw, but it it gives people, but you could if you wanted to mind. Yes. So if you undercook it slightly, you're, because it was frozen, it's safe to eat. 

Yep. 

Slightly undercooked, which it's usually better than a little, 

yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

Awesome. Thank you so much. I'm like, Ooh, I'm gonna go make some salmon right now for lunch. 

Yeah. And it's easy and you know 

it's easy. Yeah. It's listeners, listen, it's real easy. This is like just, I love that you shared such a simple recipe, Sina, because I can just. Vouch for you. Just, you just gotta do it.

Gotta try it. Yeah. It's really, it sounds fancy and complicated. It's not. 

Yes. It 

really isn't. 

Yes. And the more you do it, the easier you have some fish in your freezer. I like to tell people, again, this sounds self-serving, but if you have some high quality frozen fish in your freezer all the time, you will eat more of it, I promise.

Yeah, no, it's true. It's totally true. Love it. Well, Cena, is there anything else you wanna share with everybody before we wrap up today? 

I love people to check us out and, jump on our website. And what I like is when people get on our email list, because that's where I spend a lot of my time. And, we have a free cookbook, some of our family recipes like I just talked about.

So we wanna get you started. We want you to feel comfortable. And that's a, a place where I'm writing emails every week and. And I send, um, fish Friday recipes. So it's a place where we're gonna just kind of let you know what's happening and give a lot of confidence around cooking fish. What, what you should, you know, what season is it and what, what you might be looking for and stuff like that.

So that's where we like to. Work with you. 

Perfect. Well, Cena, thank you so much for coming on the podcast today and sharing all of this amazing fish knowledge. Thank you  📍 for being here. 

Thanks for having me.

 

  





 





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Jennie Thwing Flaming

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