What was the most expensive thing you ever cooked?

[The empressof all]

A good friend of mine just dropped off three pounds of Copper River Salmon. She wasn't going to be able to use it and already has a freezer full of fish. Since it's the first of the year and the fishing's been slow due to the weather up there, it's incredibly pricey even here in Seattle.

I'm doing a simple grill with lemon, butter and caper sauce.

At 40 bucks a pound I'm a little nervous about cooking it and a tad bit guilty even eating it.

I think I'll get over it though.

[Warpy]

1. It's hard to ruin grilled salmon

especially treated as lightly as you intend to do.

Just enjoy it. You are not responsible for what other people are charging for it.

[Tab]

2. Well, that was nice of her

I haven't had their salmon, but I understand it's supposed to be good. The companies that pack and ship these things charge a fair amount. I've never tried anything other than steaks.

As far as my most expensive, probably lobster (live, not the frozen stuff), followed perhaps by a standing rack roast, then raw pre-peeled shrimp (because it's worth the extra $5 to me to have it pre-peeled/deveined, and I get it raw because that way I control how it cooks).

NO, WAIT - actually most expensive thing I ever cooked was a pair of turkey's that I ordered from a heritage turkey farm. I forget the exact price but it was about $100 to $140 to get them and get them shipped (I think it was about 25 lbs. I wanted to try it at least once - you get a different breed of turkey than the one you find in the stores. It was worth every penny. Meat and gravy were incredible. My only complaint was that I thought I was getting a 25 lb-ish turkey, and I got two 10 to 13's. Perfectly good, but it screwed up my planning a bit in terms of oven space and timing.

But, hey, if you got 3 lbs of Copper River Salmon for free, do it the way you normally do it, but let the flavor of the salmon shine through.

Enjoy!

[sandnsea]

3. $40 lb! Yikes!!

Criminy, I should be fishing! My husband caught about a 50 lb salmon and we served it for our daughter's wedding and didn't think a thing of it. I think I'll tell her we'll have to add a couple thousand to the cost of her wedding, lol. I think the most expensive thing I've ever cooked is a Honey Baked Ham. We cook oysters too, but buy them direct from the oyster house. I don't know how much those cost by the pound either. Anyways, enjoy your dinner and don't feel a bit guilty!

[The empressof all]

4. I know...Right?

Copper River is the most luxurious salmon I've ever eaten. Last year I got it for $13.99 lb which I thought was outrageous. I pretty much decided I wouldn't be indulging myself this year. She bought it for a small dinner party she was having this evening. Her daughter went into labor early so she cancelled her plans. She got a grand-baby and I got the fish!

BTW: It was unbelievable! I have about a pound and a half left over for cold salmon picking tomorrow. I love it cold with a little mayo, a little black pepper and a squeeze of fresh lemon.

[yellowdogintexas]

5. probably a prime rib roast, for either 11 or 12 people one

Christmas long long ago.

It turned out fabulous though

[tishaLA]

6. same for me. I bought it at Whole Foods

from New Zealand, blah blah blah. It cost me like $100, but it was great.

[Tab]

7. Actually, I stand corrected

I was driving down I-93 in Nashua, NH when I blew the head gasket on my 1978 MGB. I couldn't get the motor to shut off (it was dieseling).

The ultimate rebuild (granted, I went whole-hog on a premium performance engine) ran close to $10,000.

So, I'd say that engine was the most expensive thing I've ever cooked.

[Rhiannon12866]

8. Probably lobster newburgh for my father, who loved it.

I made it for him the time he came home from a trip to Australia, and had just been diagnosed with cancer before he left. So he came home to a first dinner of lobster newburgh, with a bottle of chilled chablis, since this was what he requested. I was always glad that I did this for him, cooked for him a lot, especially when he was sick, but the sherry in the lobster mixture (and I got the good stuff), and it being served on toast makes my throat close. But if anybody's interested, I'll post the recipe. My father was a picky eater and he loved this dish, requested it on his bithday... :-)