They really were awesome. And it’s not surprising that we don’t see them often, apparently they are very labor-intensive to extract from the fish.
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No kidding! 100% of the fish cheek I’ve eaten is just pulled off of steamed fish and about the size of a dime. I remember an Iron Chef where someone used the cheek off of a sun fish or something that actually seemed to be of a reasonable portion size.
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Arrived on Coast and just finished dinner. We had the octopus and my parents and in-laws the prime steak … (Couple: inlaws).
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it’s 1.30 am here. Now I want to eat something before I sleep. lol.
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It is 22.00 here in Spain.
We just finished dinner. Normally, when home, we are first going out for wine and tapas !
Have a lovely weekend.
These must have been off large cod. They were mostly about 1.5 inches across.
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In the Basque Country, Kokotxas (pronounced Ko Ko Chas) are the neck glands of the cod fish and they are quite a delicacy. Upscale bars and restaurants have them on their menus in Spain.
The cheeks are be very refined and delicate.
Thank you for posting the fish recipes.
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I know what I’m doing with the container of grape tomatoes and basil in the fridge. Looks delicious
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If you can find Sungolds, they are very sweet.
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that salad sounds so light and refreshing!
ooh i love fish cheeks! i’ve never seen them for sale either… looks and sounds great!
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You’re in the Bay Area, Maria, and the Sunday Kensington Farmers Market has a fish stall that sells salmon jowls, including the cheeks. They’re cheapest fish available there, at $4.99/lb, which comes to around $6.00 for four jowls, enough for two meals and a small batch of stock. They are unbelievably rich.
I think I’ve seen them at Tokyo Fish in Berkeley, too.
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Oh sure.
It’s hot out.
Like REALLY hot out.
Has been for several days.
Will be tomorrow.
But I laugh in the face of the Heat Miser!
Hah-hah-hah!
Oh, who the hell am I kidding?
I cranked down the A/C when I got home tonight, knowing full well I had made the fool decision to have homemade pizza tonight. 
Oven preheated to 500°, sweet Italian sausage sausage sauteed, broccoli roasted in the convection oven, a sauce of Rao’s marinara, tomato paste, minced garlic, dried oregano and basil, a smidge of heavy cream, and some grated Parm-Reg was all made.
Piled it all on some stretched store-bought garlic pizza dough with some grated mozz and a sprinkle of Parm-Reg, and onto the pizza stone in the hot oven on parchment for 9-10 minutes.
And after the crazy week, there was wine.
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When we eat whole fish, my (Korean) mom always goes straight for parts like the cheeks and collar. I learned from the best.
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Catching up on posting - three more dinners from earlier in the month: lamb burgers with sautéed zucchini and shallots; grilled chicken thighs with scalloped potatoes and salad; housemade lasagne from freezer, with sautéed asparagus, sugar snap peas and shallots.
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I do know the Kensington FM - i used to live up there! But I’m almost never in the East Bay on Sundays, only Saturdays usually. But who knows, i may find myself out there someday… my sister lives in the East Bay, while I live in the City. And, thanks Ernie, for the Tokyo Fish tip! love that place. I’ll keep an eye out for them next time I’m there. And yes on the richness - we ate our fill of kokotxas in San Sebastian - so good!
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Grilled baby zucchini with salsa and crema
Sepia spaghetti with clams. Lots of garlic and good amount of butter. Delicious but we prefer using white pasta with a packet of squid ink.
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Real , real nice . I have found the dried squid ink pasta has little taste . I’m on the way to Amazon to order squid ink . Inspired … And just like that I ordered the Poseidon cuttlefish ink from Sardinia. This is going to be fantastic.
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Brussels Sprouts with the rest of the salchicon from the other night, brown sugar, and a splash of Maker’s Mark. The side dish to baked chicken cutlets and mashed potatoes.
I’m really enjoying cooking with salchicon. Normally I would do this recipe with bacon, but this was much better.
Took out my favorite Corelle tonight-- the good plates are in the dishwasher. 
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Yes, Sweet 100s are really great too! 
