Copper River salmon is here

Put the barberries in a bowl and cover with warm water. Let soak for 30 minutes.

Rinse fish under cold water and pat dry. Season generously with salt and pepper on both sides, brush all over with oil, and place fillets on a baking sheet. Refrigerate until ready to use, up to 2 hours uncovered, or up to 24 hours covered with plastic wrap.

Heat 3 tablespoons oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add onions and cook until they start to darken at the edges, 7 to 10 minutes. Reduce heat to low and cook until dark brown and reduced to half the original volume, about 20 minutes.

Add garlic, almonds, drained barberries and 2 tablespoons tamarind to pan. (If using cranberries instead of barberries, add an additional tablespoon of tamarind.) Cook over medium heat until fragrant, 5 minutes. Stir in herbs, and salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a bowl and cool to room temperature. Heat oven to 375 degrees.

Press barberry mixture on top of fillets. Drizzle with more oil and bake until fish is just cooked through, 10 to 15 minutes. Transfer to a serving platter. Top with any barberry mixture that fell off the fish, sprinkle with more fresh herbs, and serve with lime wedges.

In a large strainer, rinse the rice until the water runs clear, mixing it with your fingers as you rinse. Put the rinsed rice in a bowl and add 2 cups cold water and a handful of kosher salt (about 1/4 cup). Let sit for at least 1 hour.

In the bowl of a food processor, combine herbs. Process, in batches if necessary, until coarsely chopped. (You should have about 6 cups; set aside 3/4 cup of the chopped herbs to use as garnish.)

In a large pot bring 12 cups water and another handful salt (about 1/4 cup) to a boil. Drain rice and add to pot. Stir once very gently; return to a boil and cook until the grains are about halfway cooked (tender but with a firm spine), 3 to 5 minutes, skimming off any foam. Drain rice, give it a quick rinse with cold water, and spread it out on a platter or rimmed baking sheet until needed.

In a medium bowl or pot, melt 4 tablespoons butter; reserve.

In a large nonstick skillet with a cover, or shallow pot over low heat, melt remaining 4 tablespoons butter and add grapeseed oil. Swirl the pan to make sure the melted butter covers the entire surface and sides of your skillet. If not, add more butter.

Add a small pinch saffron and large pinch salt to the butter and swirl around. Place lavash so it covers the bottom and halfway up the sides of the skillet in a single layer, overlapping only slightly where needed. (You can tear the lavash into pieces.)

Sprinkle a third of the rice over the lavash. If rice is clumpy, break apart with your fingers. Top with half of the chopped herbs. Sprinkle 1 tablespoon dried dill over fresh herbs. Repeat with another layer each of rice, herbs and dried dill, mounding layers in a pyramid-like shape. Top with final third of rice, and place spring garlic, if using, around the edges of the skillet.

Using the handle of a wooden spoon, poke several holes in the rice to allow the steam to escape. Pour reserved melted butter and 2 tablespoons hot water over rice. Cover and raise heat to medium. Cook for 10 minutes, or until steam is visible around the edges of the lid. (Don’t go anywhere! The tahdig can burn very quickly.)

Reduce heat to medium-low. Lift lid and cover skillet with a clean kitchen towel. Return lid to skillet and cook for 10 minutes.

Reduce heat to very low. If you have a heat diffuser, place it under the skillet and cook for 20 to 30 minutes, or until rice is done and tahdig is golden brown. If you don’t have a diffuser, watch the pot carefully so the tahdig doesn’t burn. If you smell burning, turn the heat off and let the pot sit off the heat until rice is done.

Meanwhile, in a medium bowl, combine 1/4 teaspoon saffron and 1 tablespoon hot water. When rice is done, set aside spring garlic; reserve. Gently transfer 1 cup rice to the saffron mixture, toss to color the rice yellow, and set aside.

Taste rice for doneness. If needed, gently stir in more salt.

To serve, spoon half of the green herb rice onto a serving platter, taking care to not disturb the tahdig at the bottom of the skillet. Add half the reserved fresh herbs. Repeat the layers of rice and herbs. Top with saffron rice and garnish with spring garlic. Lift out the tahdig, break into pieces and serve on the side.

Place broth, whiskey, tomato paste and honey in a medium-size skillet over medium-high heat. Blend mixture together. When it comes to a simmer, add the salmon. Keeping the sauce at a low simmer. Cook the salmon 3 minutes turn and cook 3 minutes. The sauce will cook to a glaze. Divide salmon between 2 dinner plates and spoon glaze on top.

Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place potatoes, green beans and garlic in a microwave-safe bowl. Microwave, uncovered, on high 5 minutes. Remove and add the olive oil, rosemary and salt and pepper to taste. Toss to combine ingredients. Makes 2 servings.

Serve over greens or with a cool corn-and-bean salad.

Heat enough oil to generously coat the bottom of a large nonstick skillet over medium heat. Place a wire rack over a few layers of paper towels.

Meanwhile, combine these items in a mixing bowl as you prep them: Clean and stem the mushrooms; finely chop. Scrub the carrot well, then finely chop. Mince the parsley (to taste), if using. Cut the salmon into 1/4-to-1/2-inch dice.

Lightly beat the egg in a cup, then add to the bowl, along with the garlic and onion powders, salt, mayonnaise, teriyaki sauce, vinegar and panko. Use your clean hands to gently blend and form into 8 equal-size patties (about 3 1/2 inches wide).

Add half of the patties to the hot oil; cook for about 2 minutes or until crisped on the bottom, then turn them over and cook on the second side for 2 to 3 minutes or until golden brown. Transfer to the rack; cover loosely with aluminum foil to keep warm. Repeat with the remaining patties.

Season lightly with salt, as needed. Serve warm or at room temperature.

The salmon can be poached and refrigerated a day in advance. The rillettes need to be refrigerated in an airtight container for at least 6 hours and up to 2 days. The Japanese spice blend togarashi is available at some large supermarkets and at Asian markets.

Trim the scallions, then mince the white and light-green parts. Toss the dark-green scallion stalks into a medium saucepan along with a thin slice of the lemon.

Add the wine or vermouth, the water, 1 tablespoon of the rice vinegar, a small pinch of togarashi and a pinch of salt to the saucepan; bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Drop the salmon into the liquid, reduce the heat to medium, cover and cook for 1 minute. Remove from the heat; let the fish rest (covered, in the pot) for 10 minutes, then use a spatula to transfer the salmon to a plate. Discard the cooking liquid. The fish will cooked and will gently flake apart, at this point. Refrigerate for 20 minutes (or up to 1 day; cover if refrigerating overnight).

Put the butter in a mixing bowl; beat it with a flexible spatula until it is spreadable. Grate the lemon zest over the butter, squeeze the juice from half of the lemon into the bowl and add the minced scallions, the shallot and a pinch each of salt and togarashi. Blend thoroughly, then stir in the smoked salmon.

Whisk together the mayonnaise, the juice from the remaining lemon half, 1 teaspoon of seasoned rice vinegar and a small pinch each of salt and togarashi in a separate bowl. Stir in 1 teaspoon of the gochujang; taste, and add more if you’d like (Dorie Greenspan likes to add a total of 2 teaspoons); the dressing will be thin. Pour this over the smoked salmon mixture and blend well.

Remove the poached salmon from the refrigerator, cut it into bite-size pieces and gently stir it into the smoked salmon. It’s impossible not to crush the poached salmon, but try to keep the mixture as chunky as you can. Taste for salt, togarashi and gochujang, adjusting the seasonings if you’d like, then fold in the chopped cilantro.

You can serve the rillettes now, but the flavor will improve if you pack them into a sealed container and refrigerate for at least 6 hours (or up to 2 days).

Slice salmon diagonally into 6 4-ounce portions about 1/2- to 3/4-inch thick (or have your fishmonger slice it). Place on a cutting board or baking sheet. Season both sides generously with salt and pepper.

Put cream in a mixing bowl and beat with a whisk until just barely thickened. Add 1/4 teaspoon salt, some freshly ground pepper, the mustard, the cayenne and the lemon zest. Beat again until soft peaks form, but don’t let the cream get too stiff. Fold in chives. Taste and adjust seasoning.

Put butter in a large cast-iron skillet over medium-high heat. When butter begins to foam, add salmon pieces and reduce heat slightly. Cook gently on one side for about 2 minutes, then flip and cook 1 minute more. Turn off heat and let rest for 2 minutes. Salmon should be cooked through but moist. Be careful not to overcook.

Transfer salmon to a platter or individual plates. Spoon some savory whipped cream over each serving. Garnish with tarragon, watercress and flowers, if desired.

Cut the red onion in half, then into very thin slices. Stem, then slice the mushrooms (to yield about 2 cups). Mince the garlic. Cut the bok choy crosswise into thin slices. Cut the salmon into bite-size chunks.

Melt the coconut oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add the onion and mushrooms; cook for about 5 minutes, stirring a few times, just until softened. Add the red curry paste, pureed ginger and garlic; cook for 1 minute, stirring constantly, then add the coconut milk, broth, 1 teaspoon of the fish sauce and the 2 teaspoons of honey. Increase the heat to medium-high; bring just to a boil, stirring, then add the bok choy and salmon. Reduce the heat to low; cover and cook for about 5 minutes or until the bok choy is tender and the salmon is just opaque. Taste, and add some or all the remaining fish sauce and/or more honey, as needed.

Stack the basil and cilantro, then cut them into ribbons/thin slices. Cut the limes into wedges.

Divide the chowder among individual bowls. Garnish each portion with the basil and cilantro, then sprinkle generously with lime juice from some of the wedges. Serve warm, with the remaining wedges.