The fish should be deep, vibrant red—its natural color, unlike farmed salmon which is fed additives to make it pink—and it should be clearly marked as sockeye.

We tried deep red, delicately textured Sockeye; meaty, light pink Atlantic salmon; and those labeled “Nova” — think Nova Scotia — which is Atlantic salmon cured with minimal salt and smoke.

Sprinkle 1 lb. skinless sockeye salmon fillets, cut into 1" pieces, with 1 tsp. Diamond Crystal or ½ tsp. Morton kosher salt and ½ tsp. freshly ground pepper; set aside.