Savory Moment Podcast | Fireweed Dinner Serv

THE SAVORY MOMENT radio podcast

Welcome to The Savory Moment, an award-winning 2 ½-minute culinary soundscape where dinner ideas come to life. From the studios of KCAW in Sitka, Alaska, I blend kitchen philosophy with simple recipes for seafood and other fresh ingredients. Each Savory Moment episode features a new recipe—browse selections below for tonight's dinner inspiration. Email us at info@savorymoment.org.

SEASON 6 Savory Moment episodes

Welcome to Season 5 of The Savory Moment. Listen to the latest episodes below or visit Season 1, Season 2, Season 3, Season 4,or Season 5 archives.

S6 E1 Blue Revolution

SEASON 6 recipes

View the latest Savory Moment recipes below.

Or visit Season 1, Season 2, Season 3, Season 4,or Season 5 archives.

S6 E2 Let The Yam Speak

S6 E3 Four Seasons

S6 E4 Salmon Joy

S6 E5 After Dinner Tea

Participating stations
The Savory Moment is a free
program available for download
on PRX.

The Savory Moment is available to public radio stations for free on PRX.

S6 E6 Pacific Cod and Persillade

Ribbon Kelp Butter

Makes about 1 cup. This butter is lovely on crostini, potatoes, or melted over sauteed vegetables.

1 tablespoon olive oil
¼ cup ribbon kelp (dulse) flakes
2 sticks butter, softened
1/8 teaspoon salt

Warm the olive oil in a small pan over medium-low heat. Add the ribbon kelp and saute until fragrant, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to a small bowl and cool completely. While the seaweed is cooling, process the butter and salt in a Cuisinart until smooth, scraping down the bowl as needed. Add the ribbon kelp and process to your liking—pulse just a few times if you want the kelp flakes to remain visible.

Sighing Yams with Brown Butter

Makes 2 contented yams. For a cozy autumn dinner, serve with cranberry sauce, roasted broccoli, and a pot of chewy brown rice.

2 large yams, rinsed and dried
4 tablespoons butter
Soy sauce
Honey

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. I prefer to not poke my yams, but if you prefer to let a little steam escape, poke through the skin once or twice with a fork. Place yams directly on the oven rack. Bake for 1 hour, or until the yams are very tender inside and the skin has just started to relax. Meanwhile, brown the butter in a small pan over medium-low heat. After the froth has subsided and the liquid has stopped sputtering, remove from heat.

Remove yams from oven and allow to cool for 5 minutes. Slice in half. Stir up the inside of the yams just a little with a fork—this will help the toppings saturate the flesh. If the brown butter has hardened, reheat. Drizzle yams with butter, soy sauce, and honey to taste.

Winter Halibut in Parchment

SERVES 1

2 18-inch pieces parchment
2 5-ounce portions wild Alaska halibut
Salt and pepper
4 palm-sized leaves savoy cabbage
2 scallions, each sliced into 4 pieces
2 thumb-length pieces of lemongrass, bruised
6 shitake mushrooms, sliced
1 tablespoon butter, halved

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Sprinkle halibut portions generously with salt and pepper. Set aside.

Lay two 18-inch pieces of parchment on your counter. Fold each in half, then open them back up again. In the middle of one side, begin layering your ingredients (each serving gets half of the ingredients listed above). First, lay down the savoy cabbage, then add the scallions and lemongrass. Be sure to bruise the lemongrass with a kitchen mallet to release flavor and aroma. Place the halibut on top, followed by the mushrooms and butter.

Fold the empty half of the parchment over the ingredients. Crimp the edges tightly to seal. Place the packets on a baking sheet. Bake for 18 minutes. Enjoy the rich juices collected in the bottom of the packet over hot rice.

Savory Moment salmon recipes

Looking for a salmon recipe? Check out the following episodes:

SEASON 1, Episode 2, The Savory Moment: Breathing in the World. Features Salmon and Plantain Skewers

SEASON 1, Episode 6, The Savory Moment: The Razors Edge. Features a grilled salmon recipe.

SEASON 3, Episode 9, The Savory Moment: For the Mere Mortal. Features salmon glazes.

SEASON 3, Episode 7, The Savory Moment: Salmon Fit for a King. Features poached salmon.

SEASON 5 Episode 7 Dark Days. Features a kale and salmon salad.

SEASON 5 Episode 13 Iron Chef Alaska. Features Salmon Salad with Mango

Ivan Chai

We love this short video on making Ivan chai, also known as fireweed tea.

Thomas Keller's Cod en Persillade

An easy and delicious way to enjoy Pacific cod from one of America's most celebrated chefs.

1 2-lb. piece of skinless cod top loin (thickest part of fish)
1/2 c. dried fine bread crumbs
2 t. finely chopped flat-leaf parsley
1 T. Dijon mustard
Kosher salt
Canola oil
Fleur de sel
Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Remove fish from fridge and let sit 15 minutes. Cut crosswise into six pieces. Combine bread crumbs and parsley in shallow bowl. Put mustard in a small bowl. Fill second small bowl with cold water. Season cod on both sides with salt. Dip brush into water and then into mustard and brush top of each fillet lightly. Dip mustard side of fish into bread crumbs to make an even coating. Shake bowl of crumbs slightly before coating each piece so that crumbs are in an even layer. Pour some canola oil into ovenproof fry pan that will hold all six pieces without touching. Heat to medium-high until oil just begins to smoke. Lower heat to medium and put fish in pan, crumb side down. Cook until crust is golden brown, about 1 minute. Transfer pan to oven and cook until fish just begins to flake, about 8 to 9 minutes. Sprinkle with fleur de sel. Serves 6.

Tundra to Table

We love this video cooking series from the Alaska tundra. Learn to incorporate sourdock, fireweed, and salmonberries in an upcoming meal.

Green Music

It's true! Living cells respond to music. Learn more in the German dairy science journal Milchwissenschaft.

Riversong Lodge Fudge Brownies

Another fantastic recipe from Alaska chef and lodgekeeper Kristen Dixon. This one is from "The Riversong Lodge Cookbook: World-Class Cooking in the Alaskan Bush." Makes 32 brownies.

1 cup unsalted butter
3 ounces unsweetened chocolate
3 cups sugar
5 eggs
1 ½ cups all-purpose flour
2 cups coarsely chopped recipes
2 ounces bittersweet chocolate, chopped
2 ounces milk chocolate, chopped

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees. Grease and flour a 13-by-9-by-2 inch baking pan. Melt the butter and the unsweetened chocolate in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan over low heat. Set aside.

Beat the sugar and eggs in a large mixer bowl on high speed for 10 minutes. Beat in the melted chocolate mixture on low speed. Add the flour, mixing until just blended. Add the nuts and the chopped chocolate, mixing well.

Pour the mixture into the prepared baking pan. Bake on the center rack of the oven until the center of the brownies is firm to the touch and a toothpick inserted comes out clean, about 35 to 40 minutes. Cool the brownies and cut into squares.

Lebanese Lentil and Collard Stew

This Lebanese-inspired soup combines lentils, fresh lemon, and greens. Chard is traditionally used but this preparation makes an easy and delicious substitution—frozen collard greens.

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 large onion, diced
3 cloves garlic, grated
1 cup brown lentils, rinsed
6 cups water
1 to 1 ½ teaspoons salt, to taste
2 medium russet potatoes, diced
1 teaspoon dried mint
Juice of 1 medium lemon
1 10-ounce package frozen collard greens, thawed and drained.

Sauté onion in olive oil over medium low heat until beginning to soften, about 5 minutes. Add garlic and sauté for an additional minute. Add lentils, water, salt, potato, and mint. Simmer gently over low heat until lentils are tender, 25 to 30 minutes. Stir in collard greens and lemon juice. Taste, then add additional salt if necessary.

Dr. Lukie’s Favorite Yukon Gold Potatoes

Meet Dr. Lukie Pieterse, editor-in-chief of Potato News Today. Lukie has worked in the potato industry for the last 36 years, devoting himself in the early days of his career to a 2,500-acre farm in South Africa where he grew drip-irrigated potatoes. After moving to Canada in 1996, he started a potato consulting business and became involved in projects all over the world, including Peru where years earlier an indigenous yellow potato of the region became inspiration for the Yukon Gold. The Potato News Today website features over 11,000 news stories about potatoes—check it out for a look into the latest potato-related news as well as past articles that reveal a fascinating history of the potato industry.

Here is Dr. Lukie’s favorite way to prepare Yukon Gold potatoes. It comes from Beckie Hemmerling at the blog Eat Simple Food (www.eatsimplefood.com).

Crispy Oven Roasted Yukon Gold Potatoes
Beckie Hemmerling

6 small Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled & halved
2 tablespoons olive oil
½ teaspoon salt
Pinch of black pepper

Preheat oven to 425. Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil.

Toss the peeled and halved potatoes in olive oil, salt, and pepper (in a bowl or on the pan). Place potatoes flat side down and cook for ~15 minutes. The potatoes may not be golden yet. They may stick to the pan. Take a thin spatula and slightly nudge them off (see video). Flip and cook for an additional 12-15 minutes or until tender and brown.

Salmon Fried Rice with Starch Retrogradation

Serves 2 to 3. For best results, use day-old rice that has lost its stickiness. Pop open a can of wild Alaska salmon and thaw a pea-carrot-corn combo from the freezer and you’re nearly there.

3 tablespoons + a drizzle vegetable oil, divided
1//2 to 1 tablespoon grated fresh ginger
2 cups day-old rice
2 to 3 tablespoons soy sauce or more to taste, divided
1 6-ounce can wild Alaska salmon—juices reserved
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 cup frozen peas-carrots-corn mix, thawed
1 egg, lightly beaten
Garnish: sesame oil and sliced scallions

Warm oil in a wok over medium heat. Add rice and ginger, then sauté until rice is shiny and chewy, about 5 minutes. Drizzle with the canned salmon juices and 1 tablespoon soy sauce and cook for an additional minute. Add the garlic and vegetables, then sauté until the garlic is fragrant and everything is hot. Taste and add more sauce sauce if needed.

Push the mixture off the to side, then drizzle the wok with a little more oil. Add the lightly beaten egg and scramble. Add the salmon and break into pieces. Push the rice and vegetables back into the center of the wok. Combine gently and allow to rest over low heat until everything is heated through. Garnish with sesame oil and scallions, if desired.

Participating stations

The Savory Moment is available to public radio stations for free on PRX. Participating stations include:

KCAW in Sittka, Alaska

KSTK in Wrangell, Alaska

KTOO in Juneau, Alaska

KRBD in Ketchikan, Alaska

KSKA in Anchorage, Alaska

KSKO in McGrath, Alaska

Click here to add your station!

Your host

Beth Short-Rhoads is a chef and food writer who lives in Sitka, Alaska. Visit her on Instagram.

Technical support
Operations Director at
KCAW, Adam Lechowicz mixed and mastered

Season 2 and now

provides technical support.

The Producer

KCAW 104.7 is a community radio station in Sitka, Alaska airing public radio programming

Our theme music

The Savory Moment's theme music is "Columbine Waltz", composed by Robert

Vandall and performed by Yvette Baer. It's used with permission from Alfred Publishing and Baer Piano Studio.

S6 E13 Starch Retrogradation

S6 E11 Potato News Today

S6 E7 Tundra to Table

S6 E8 Green Musiic

S6 E9 Riversong

S6 E10 Every Bite Counts

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THE SAVORY MOMENT radio podcast

SEASON 6 Savory Moment episodes

SEASON 6 recipes

Participating stations
The Savory Moment is a free
program available for download
on PRX.

The Savory Moment is available to public radio stations for free on PRX.

Participating stations

The Savory Moment is available to public radio stations for free on PRX. Participating stations include:

Our theme music

Join my mailing list for dinner ideas

Follow
on Instagram

THE SAVORY MOMENT radio podcast

SEASON 6 Savory Moment episodes

SEASON 6 recipes

Participating stations The Savory Moment is a free program available for download on PRX.

The Savory Moment is available to public radio stations for free on PRX.

Participating stations

The Savory Moment is available to public radio stations for free on PRX. Participating stations include:

Our theme music

Join my mailing list for dinner ideas

Participating stations
The Savory Moment is a free
program available for download
on PRX.