Commander-style ukha soup is a rare dish, both in terms of its taste and its means of preparation. Before trying it, you have to take the long journey to the Commander Islands, a beautiful archipelago in the midst of the endless expanses of the Pacific Ocean. Only here can you catch a fish that has just moved from the salty ocean waters into the crystal clean, fresh water of a river. Only here do the herbs and plants grow that the locals add into the ukha’s stock. And it is only this mysterious archipelago that is inhabited by people who know the secret of how to prepare a perfect commander-style ukha soup.

Commander-style Ukha soup

recipe serves 8 persons; cooking time ~ 45 minutes
Ingredients:
1 large salmon (7-7.5 kilograms), eg silver salmon (kizhuch) 3 liters of water, 800 grams of potato, 3 onions, laurel leaf, salt, pepper, 1 bunch of Commander Islands parley, 3 table spoons of red caviar, 70 grams of vodka.   And don’t forget!!! One smoldering piece of wood from the fire!!.

Directions:

Take a 5-6 liter pot and half fill it with water, add salt and heat on the hob, bringing to the boil.

Wash the fish, but don’t skin it. Gut the fish, but leave the head, tail and fins on. Then cut the fish into large chunks.

Put the potatoes and fish chunks into the boiling water. Clean the onion, but don’t slice or chop it. When the water comes to the boil, add in the onions whole, the laurel leaf, salt and pepper. Boil for 15 minutes

Chop the parsley up fine and add into the pot just as the Ukha fish soup finishes off. At the same time, pour in the vodka and add the smoldering piece of wood. Boil for 2 to 3 minutes.

Take the pot off the flame, add in the red caviar, cover with a lid and allow to stand for 10 to 15 minutes.