Wild salmon, brown bears, and recipes from the last frontier - Alaska
Alaska jobs - dream jobs! I'm cooking, but I'm also fly fishing, bear chasing, adventure hunting, beach combing, and wild strawberry picking. I entertain my guests with comedy routines, and I develop recipes for wild salmon and wild duck.
I see close-ups of the Bering Glacier, the Gulf of Alaska, and the occasional brown bear. The latter too close for comfort, sometimes. Read about it...
What you will find here:
- The Driftwood Lodge
- Looking out from the lodge...
- In the kitchen you'll find me...
- How to cook wild salmon
- Smoked Quail - from the comfort of your kitchen.
- Perfect condiment for fish and fowl
- Photo album
- The night I peed on a bear...
- Jobs in Alaska
- Hot in summer - but cooold in winter!
- Chef Keem, the entertainer...
- A sad bush pilot story..
- DC-3 "buzzing" our lodge
- One of the greatest Alaskan bush pilots!
- Alaska Trivia
- Cheechako? Moose nuggets? Alaska slang...
- Great Polar Bear Videos
- Join the Masterpiece Movement on Squidoo Group...
- ...on Alaska
- Exciting Alaska Books
- Alaska DVD's
- Please Visit My Blog "Chef Keem's Squid Kitchen"
- Chef Keem's Cabinet of Curiosities on CafePress
- See Alaska with Orbitz!
- New Top Chef Blogs
- Comments appreciated
The Driftwood Lodge
Base camp for once-in-a-lifetime adventures
Take a very large plane to Anchorage, Alaska, continue with a smaller aircraft to Cordova, AK, and then take a single-engine Cessna air taxi across the Copper River delta and the Bering glacier, and you'll end up in the remote wilderness of the Tsiu river system. Close to the mouth of the Tsiu, right by the Gulf of Alaska, you'll find the Driftwood Lodge, operated by the Alaska Expedition Company.During the silver salmon run, starting at the end of August, we welcome up to 14 guests weekly, until mid-October. The housing is very comfortable and the fishing and dining is outstanding.
Looking out from the lodge...
...you might see this:
The bears I've met...
A few clips showing brown bears as they come around our lodge in Alaska. They are attracted by the scents from Chef Keem's kitchen, but they also like the wild strawberries on the surrounding grounds.
Runtime: 2:14
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In the kitchen you'll find me...
...demonstrating wild duck cooking
How to cook wild duck
Chef Keem demonstrates a proven method to prepare wild duck breast, as shown here in his Alaska lodge kitchen.
Runtime: 3:34
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How to cook wild salmon
How to cook wild salmon
Bavarian Chef Keem demonstrates in his Alaska lodge kitchen how he prefers to cook wild salmon. Many guests have enjoyed this favorite preparation, over the last 10 years. You, too, can come fish for wild salmon at this choice location, and savor Chef Keem's American/Bavarian cuisine. Visit www.alaskaexpedition.com for more info.
Runtime: 4:17
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Smoked Quail - from the comfort of your kitchen.
A favorite recipe at the lodge.
Take one quail, clean well...Actually, you want to get some frozen semi-boneless quails and thaw them overnight in your refrigerator. Or, if you're in a hurry, thaw under running cold water for about one hour. Rinse the birds and pluck any remaining feathers from the skin.
Prepare a thin paste with canola or olive oil and your favorite spice mix.
This can be salt, pepper, paprika, garlic and onion powders, dried herbs, etc., or any commercial poultry spice mix or smoke dry rub. Coat the bird lightly with your paste, inside and out.
Now it gets really interesting. There is this fantastic device that let's you smoke small pieces of fish or fowl right on your stove top. You can get this stove top smoker from Hudson's on the Bend restaurant in Austin. Click on the pot "store", dangling from the top of the page, and there's a picture and ordering info. The box includes instructions and different kinds of wood chips.
Line the bottom of the smoker and the dripping pan with foil for easier clean-up. Put a heaped tablespoon of wood chips in the center on the bottom. Replace the dripping pan and rack, apply a little cooking spray so the skin won't stick, and set the seasoned birds on top of the rack. Close the lid and set the pan on your stove, with the flame or hot plate centered underneath. At the lodge, I turn the propane gas flame on high, you might want to start with a medium to high setting. Within a few seconds you will smell the aroma of smoking wood, with barely a wisp of smoke escaping through the fairly tight lid. No asbestos overalls needed here.
Smoke the quail to "rare", which will take about 10 minutes. You can do this a few hours ahead and refrigerate the birds until you're ready for the finishing touches. Right before serving time, finish the quail in a hot oven (375 to 400 degrees), for 3 to 5 minutes, to a "medium rare". Dip it into a small pot with your favorite glaze, or apply the glaze with a pastry brush. Serve on top of your favorite salad.
For a glaze, I recommend to melt any of your favorite pepper jellies with a little hot water. A healthier way is to drizzle some of my Agasweet flavored agave nectar over the birds. Enjoy!
Perfect condiment for fish and fowl
Drizzle some Agasweet flavored agave nectar over your salmon or duck for a gourmet touch addressing all taste buds for a flavor explosion in your mouth!
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Photo album
A few pictures taken over the years. Enjoy!
Driftwood Lodge at s...
Driftwood Lodge
Trumpeter swans &...
Beautiful Tsiu river
Honey hole
Tracks at the mouth...
Dr. Jim fishing
Bering glacier
Nevada boys fishin
Shore lunch
Keem 4-wheeler
Keemsilver
Chris with silver
Chef Keem fishing
Chef Keem silver fox
Chef Keem plating di...
Bear Wellington
Keem and Jody
Keem and Karen
The night I peed on a bear...
...a true story.
It was 11:30 p.m., on a clear and chilly August night at the Driftwood Lodge in SE Alaska - when I had to pee. I stepped outside, behind the lodge, where one can stand at the edge of a 3-foot dip giving way to a vast expansion of the tundra surrounding our piece of land - and I went about my "business". During the day, one can see the Chugach Mountain Range, about 20 miles away, and the dense growth of alder and cottonwood stretching across the area. At night, all I could see was the moon and the mountain tops in their yellowish luster.I had just arrived 2 days ago, for the first time in the last frontier, to work as the chef of the lodge during the upcoming silver salmon season. And I was star-struck, so to speak, by the dramatic beauty of the land and its views, especially on this beautiful summer night near the Gulf of Alaska's thrashing surf.
As I was standing there in the moon light, spraying my arc of relief into the bushes across the night-black dip in front of me, I noticed the outline of a strangely familiar shape rising slowly from the darkness of the ground, about 5-6 feet away. The "shape" became taller than I, and the "outline" became clearer, while I was "holding on" to the last, somewhat hesitant phase of my "business" at hand.
And then everything seemed to happen at the same fraction of a nano second: the "shape" turned into a definite live brown bear hovering 6 feet away in wonder and puzzlement over my "wet approach", me remembering everything they told me about encountering a bear (wave your arms, holler, DON'T run!), dismissing it at the same moment, turning around and racing back into the safety (?) of the lodge, where a couple of our fishing guides finished their last beer of the evening. One of these brave young men grabbed his rifle and went back outside to chase off the "wet one". He was still there, in the shrubs, exploring the origins of those wonderful kitchen scents he had probably picked up from miles away. We could hear him moseying around for a while longer, until our guide's profanity yells must have persuaded him to move on. At least, I have a witness - I was not hallucinating!
I had peed on a bear!
Jobs in Alaska
- Alaska Expedition Company
- Meet the fine folks who run the Driftwood Lodge; contact for booking and job info. Check out their outstanding knife company, Knives of Alaska, for the highest quality fishing and hunting knives.
- Alaska State job bank
- Browse the AK State job bank for opportunities in many areas.
- I love Alaska!
- Info on jobs and relocation. Huge resource site!
- Local AK jobs
- Another job bank listing local AK jobs.
- CoolWorks in AK
- Seasonal summer jobs in the tourism industry, and more.
- Job Monkey
- Jobs in the fishing industry.
- AK job finder
- Deckhand, cannery, onshore and offshore jobs.
Hot in summer - but cooold in winter!
Chef Keem, the entertainer...
A sad bush pilot story..
One day, about 4 years ago, they took off in border-line weather conditions and never returned. A few days later they were found, crashed into a mountain side.
Bush pilots live a dangerous life. Often, the pressure to generate revenue is so great that they take the risk and fly, even in bad weather. Many of them are very good-hearted men and women who know that thousands of small, remote communities depend on their service. Their sense of duty and responsibility can influence their judgement in the face of potential dangers.
Let's hear it for these brave men and women of the last frontier!
DC-3 "buzzing" our lodge
DC-3 buzzing our lodge
A DC-3 is "buzzing" our lodge in SE Alaska. See more fun Alaska lodge clips and stories at http://www.squidoo.com/chefkeem
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One of the greatest Alaskan bush pilots!
Noel Wien, founder of Wien Airlines
Noel Wien: Alaska Pioneer Bush Pilot (Classic Reprint Series (Fairbanks, Alaska), No. 7.)
Amazon Price: $19.46 (as of 09/05/2008)
List Price: $24.95
Used Price: $17.50
An amazing story from the pioneer days of Alaskan air travel. A breath-taking read!
Release Date: 12/31/1969
Avg. Customer Rating: 
Usually ships in 24 hours
Alaska Trivia
Facts, legends, stories - about a fascinating State.
Alaska FunTrivia
Alaska trivia questions and quizzes1 point
Alaskan Facts, Lore, and Legends
0 points
Alaska Stories
Many Alaska stories, mostly hilarious0 points
Alaska Trivia Quiz Game
Alaska Trivia Quiz Game. This is tricky! And very more...0 points
Alaska Fast Facts and Trivia
Alaska fast facts and trivia in no particular orde more...0 points
Alaska Trivia | Alaska Wildland Adventures
Let's test your Alaska knowledge.0 points
Here's my favorite link:
Great Polar Bear Videos
Voting for best video about Polar Bears
I
'm always looking for great videos on Polar Bears. Here are my favorites. Vote for the one you like the best. Let me know if you have a video or if you know of one that is not listed. Enjoy!
For more great polar bear videos -- animated, cartoon, and live, visit Polar Bear Video Showcase
SpikedHumor.com » Polar Bears At Play » SpikedHumor.com
Watch polar bears playing with each other.5 points
How Not To Rescue A Polar Bear On A Cliff Video
The plan was simply to gently lower the polar bear more...4 points
http://www.livevideo.com/video/5019F03BF460438C9FC7BE73A10E5BE0/polar-bears-and-global-warming.aspx
Polar bears live only in the arctic and as the sea more...2 points
Polar Bear: The Arctic Warrior (Ursi's Blog) Video
Wildlife Special (50 minutes) No - it's not about more...1 point
Join the Masterpiece Movement on Squidoo Group...
If you have a Masterpiece Lens!
...on Alaska
Exciting Alaska Books
Alaska: A Novel
Release Date: 11/12/2002
Amazon Price: $10.85 (as of 09/05/2008)
List Price: $15.95
Used Price: $7.28
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Working on the Edge: Surviving In the World's Most Dangerous Profession: King Crab Fishing on Alaska's HighSeas
Amazon Price: $10.85 (as of 09/05/2008)
List Price: $15.95
Used Price: $1.64
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The Final Frontiersman: Heimo Korth and His Family, Alone in Alaska's Arctic Wilderness
Amazon Price: $11.20 (as of 09/05/2008)
List Price: $14.00
Used Price: $3.07
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Among Grizzlies: Living with Wild Bears in Alaska
Release Date: 02/02/1999
Amazon Price: $11.20 (as of 09/05/2008)
List Price: $14.00
Used Price: $3.00
Usually ships in 24 hours
Race Across Alaska: First Woman to Win the Iditarod Tells Her Story
Amazon Price: $13.57 (as of 09/05/2008)
List Price: $19.95
Used Price: $3.04
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Alaska DVD's
![Alaska: Spirit of the Wild (IMAX) [Blu-ray]](http://ecx.images-amazon.com/images/I/11V8xLXbLrL.jpg)
Alaska: Spirit of the Wild (IMAX) [Blu-ray]
Go far beyond even the highest definition with thi more...1 point
60º North At 500 Feet: A Bush Pilot's View of Alaska, Yukon, Northwest Territories and British Columbia
60º North at 500 Feet: A Bush Pilot's View of Bri more...1 point
Alaska's Great Race - The Susan Butcher Story
"ALASKA'S GREAT RACE" Susan Butcher and more...0 points
Please Visit My Blog "Chef Keem's Squid Kitchen"
"Secret" recipes revealed and other interesting food bits...
Fetching RSS feed... please stand byChef Keem's Cabinet of Curiosities on CafePress
Cute and irreverent gifts
Wolpertinger & Jackalopes Stein
Price: 16.99
Sugar free vegan 3.5" Button
Price: 5.99
Only good spirits Jr. Spaghetti Tank
Price: 21.99
I'm a rolypolic! Note Cards (Pk of 10)
Everybody will smile at this funny "confession" of our cute little doodle.
Price: 13.99
Celebrity Chef Tote Bag
Price: 17.99
