In a nutshell

Black cod cheeks in cultured butter—smoke-smooched, melt-in-your-mouth, unreasonably good. The Spaniards call this cut cocochas. We call it our best can yet.

The Cheek You Didn't See Coming.

Our black cod is hook-and-line caught in the cold, deep waters of Alaska. But this tin isn't about the fillet. It's about the cut the fishermen keep for themselves—the cheeks, carved from where the two gill plates come together—tender and rich in a way that no other part of the fish can touch. The Spanish have a word for it: cocochas. Loosely translated as cheeks. Loosely, because language hasn't quite caught up to how good this actually is.

After our friends at Fish & Family Seafoods out of Sitka, AK meticulously cut—while at sea, mind you—both tips from every sablefish they pull in, we smoke them the same way we smoke our salmon. Then, we do something extra on top of all the other extra: we pack 'em in a decadent world-class cultured butter from Fantello Farmstead Creamery—a small, grass-fed dairy operation out of Enumclaw, Washington, where the butter changes color with the seasons and costs more per pound than the labor-intensive morsels it enshrouds. You can decide if that says more about the butter or the cheeks.

If you're scared of heights, then maybe don't take this one to the next level. But, if you're the adventure seeker we think you are: gently warm the can before you open it. A warm-water bath works great or you can even let the sun do it for you during your picnic. The butter will liquify and let you glide the tips from can to lips.

Handpacked on Prince of Wales Island label

A cut so prized the fishermen rarely let it leave the boat
Packed in Fantello Farmstead cultured butter, Enumclaw, WA
Eat-them-whole tenderness
Smoke-forward & buttery-rich—the word "unctuous" in a can

A cut so prized the fishermen rarely let it leave the boat
Eat-them-whole tenderness

Packed in Fantello Farmstead cultured butter, Enumclaw, WA
Smoke-forward & buttery-rich—the word "unctuous" in a can

Cheeks On Deck

Fish & Family Seafoods runs a small, hook-and-line operation out of Sitka. The kind of outfit that pulls black cod up one at a time from the cold, deep water it likes best. No hurry. Just a few stubborn fishermen doing it the hard way, because the hard way's the only way worth a damn.
Most fish get cut back at the dock. Not these. Fish & Family carves the cheeks from every sablefish right there on the water, a careful bit of knife work most folks would skip, then flash-freezes them before the boat even turns for home. By the time the cheeks reach Klawock, the delicate part is already done. Properly.

How to eat it

On toast. Simple and perfect.

Warm the can in hot water, pop it open, eat whole. This is the way.

On a rye cracker with a cornichon. Spare, precise, perfect.

Toast with a spread on a plate next to a small container labeled 'Freak Cheeks'.

Spoon over soft polenta. Pour the butter over everything.

Cold, with a glass of Champagne and a smug expression.

Split a can with someone you trust. That's intimacy.

On toast. Simple and perfect.
Spoon over soft polenta. Pour the butter over everything.
Warm the can in hot water, pop it open, eat whole. This is the way.
Cold, with a glass of Champagne and a smug expression.
On a rye cracker with a cornichon. Spare, precise, perfect.
Split a can with someone you trust. That's intimacy.

Crafted In Alaska. Canned With Care.

Your Wildest Fish Came True.

The Can-do Cannery.

No Trawlers. Ever.