Smoked Sockeye Salmon Salad {#dairyfree #recipe} and #IFBC part one

It has finally happened; yes it did…what?! Well, I finally attended my first ever blogger conference  the International Food Blogger Conference {IFBC} in Seattle.  The perfect opportunity as Seattle is only a short train ride away from Portland - so yes, no expensive air travel was required plus I got to hang out with my good friend Heather for a couple of days.  Yay ~ every year we {the family} visit Seattle right after Thanksgiving as Ron likes to run the Seattle 1/2 Marathon and we always stay at the Westin.  So I consider myself an expert Seattle tourist - yup that is right at least I did until then ;)  Had I ever been up to the Space Needle -> No!  Chilully Glass Museum -> No! Pike's Place Chowder -> No!…yes, the list goes on and on and finally I got to experience all those places because - I will be truthful - Heather made me do it.  Oh my - what have we been missing….more about that in another post.

Now back to the IFBC as one might expect there was an opening reception and this one was hosted by Bristol Bay Sustainable Salmon together with a couple other companies.  The featured dishes were all - as one might expect - salmon;  it was not just any type of salmon but Sockeye.  Out of all the different types of Pacific salmon {King/Chinook - Coho - Sockeye..} it is always Sockeye that I choose.  Sockeye with its deep orange-red color, its deep flavor, its smooth texture is amazing is - at least to me - the best.  Three different dishes all with Sockeye salmon and the one that stood out the most?  Smoked Sockeye Salmon Salad - I may have had more than a couple of servings…oh my so absolutely unbelievably amazingly delicious.  Delicate yet bold smoked Sockeye combined with onions, lime juice and a surprisingly mouthwatering punch from the flecks of jalapeño.  This was the one dish that stood out from the three.  Simple yet elegant.

So here {thank you Heather} is my version of the Smoked Sockeye Salmon Salad - I served it as an appetizer at small dinner party with a main dish of pasta Bolognese…it is impressive yet super easy to make

Smoked Sockeye Salmon Salad

• 1/3 lb smoked Sockeye salmon, skinned, cut into bite size pieces 
• 1 C Cherry tomatoes, quartered
• 1-1/2 Tbs seeded, minced jalapeño
• 1/2 C chopped red pepper
• 1/2 C chopped cilantro
• 1/4 C lime juice
• For garnish - > 1-1/2 C little dipper corn chips {more or less}

1. Combine all ingredients in a large bowl.  Cover with kitchen wrap, place in fridge and let rest for at least one hour before serving
2. Remove from the refrigerator 10 minutes or so before serving.  Arrange salmon salad in the middle of a large plate and garnish with chips around the platter.

Enjoy!