Recipe: Roasted coho salmon

Roasted coho salmon
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(Serves 8-12)
Note: 1 fish will serve four, just halve the remaining ingredients

Three 2-pound, scaled, gutted, cleaned coho salmon, head and tail on, washed well to remove any blood
1 Tblsp kosher salt
1 Tblsp unsalted butter
1 bunch (1 oz) fresh mint,leaves chopped and stems reserved
1/2 cup white wine
Freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1/2 cup water
One 8-ounce containter (3/4 cup) yogurt

With a large knife, cut 3 parallel diagonal slashes into each side of each fish, slicing about 1/2 to 1 inch into the flesh. Sprinkle on both sides with salt.
Use 1/2 Tblsp of butter to grease an 18x13x2-inch roasting pan. Be sure to butter the sides.
Place all 3 fish in the pan. Outer 2 fish should be placed with backbones toward the edges of the pan. If there is room, do not let fish touch sides of pan. Stuff mouths and cavities with mint stems.
Sprinkle with 1/4 cup of wine. Put tiny dabs of butter in each visible slit and inside the heads. Lightly but evenly grind pepper over the fish.
Place rack in center of oven. Place a second rack in the bottom of the oven. Roast cucumbers at the same time as the fish on bottom rack (recipe follows). Preheat oven to 500 degrees.
Roast fish for 20 min (10 min per inch of thickness). Using a large spatula, remove to a platter. Place pan on top of stove. Add remaining wine and the water and bring to a boil while scraping bottom vigorously. Let reduce by half. Reduce heat to simmer and stir in the chopped mint leaves.
Reduce heat to lowest possible. Add yogurt. Cook, stirring, until barely warm. Spoon over fish (if cucumbers are not made) or pour sauce over cucumbers in a separate bowl.

Gingered Cucumbers
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(serves 6-8, make half recipe with one fish)

3 teas unsalted butter
5 large cucumbers (5 pounds), trimmed, peeled, quartered lengthwise and cut into 1 3/4 inch lengths (about 9 1/2 cups)

3 1/4 ounces fresh gingerroot, peeled, trimmed and roughly cut into 1/4 to 1/2 inch dice (about 1/3 cup)

7 cloves garlic, smashed and coarsly sliced
4 teas ground cumin
2 teas kosher salt

Butter a 14x12x2-inch roasting pan. Combine cucumbers, ginger, and garlic in a single layer in the pan. Place on lowest rack of oven. Roast for 20 min while roasting fish.
After removing fish from oven, stir cumin and salt into cucumbers. While deglazing the fish pan, return cucumbers to oven for 5 more minutes. Stir in yogurt sauce from fish.