Naomi Tomky

For the 95th week of "7 QUESTION SUNDAY" we shine the spotlight on another influential individual from the PNW. Naomi Tomky is the authoer of The Pacific Northwest Seafood Cookbook.

4EVRGRN: Hey, NT! Tell us a little about yourself.

NT: I am the author of The Pacific Northwest Cookbook and write about food and travel for publications including Saveur, The New York Times, Fortune, Food & Wine, and many more. I have also contributed to various guides, guidebooks, and Lucky Peach’s book All About Eggs.

I have used my unrelenting enthusiasm as an eater, photographer, and writer to propel myself around the world. From trailing a street food hawker in Singapore to navigating the ancient roads of the Mayan jungle

1. What is the first recipe someone should try from The Pacific Northwest Seafood Cookbook?

The slow-roasted salmon with chimichurri sauce, which is the first recipe in the book. It shows how easy and wonderful Pacific Northwest seafood can be, especially when you don't try to cook it like it's meat.

2. Some people need more visual help to learn to cook, how can they learn from you?

Ha, well, there are definitely photos in the book? I also occasionally teach seafood cooking classes online for PCC, though I don't have any on the schedule right now.

3. What do you miss most when traveling outside the PNW?

The long evenings in summer, the smell of fall, the skiing in winter.

4. What is your favorite PNW influenced recipe to make?

Can I use my recipe from answer 1? It's still in regular rotation around here.

5. When you want the night off from cooking, what’s your favorite PNW meal?

Whatever fresh seafood Mutsuko Soma's incorporating into her soba and tempura menu at Kamonegi.

6. Many people associate this area with salmon, what is something edible found in the PNW that might surprise people?

Chicken teriyaki, the old school version in a styrofoam container with the sweet salad dressing.

7. What is a unique trait of PNW foodies?

A belief in great seafood as a basic part of all food, rather than a subgenre. In other words, that any type of restaurant can and should have seafood, rather than needing to go to a specific "seafood" restaurant to find it.

You can order the cookbook wherever books are sold and find out more on IG @the_gastrognome Twitter: @gastrognome and her website https://www.naomitomky.com/