Rogotzke’s Salmon Sauce
This simple maple glaze comes from a rich family tradition, two ultrarunners, and a lot of love. The recipe is part of a collaboration between Trail Runner and Protect Our Winters.
Heading out the door? Read this article on the new Outside+ app available now on iOS devices for members! Download the app.
Read and listen to The Backyard Stories interview with elite ultrarunner Mike Foote here.
Mike Foote on maple syrup and food sourcing:
Where do you get your maple syrup?
We get our maple syrup from my wife’s dad, who had a 5,000-tap maple syrup operation in the north woods of Minnesota.
Where do you get your salmon?
We get our wild Alaskan sockeye salmon from Bristol Bay. My wife, a nurse practitioner by trade, takes vacation from that job every summer to crew on her dad’s salmon fishing boat. She has been going to Alaska every summer since she was 14.
Why is knowing where your food comes from important to you?
The act of harvesting and gathering is such a great way to connect with our food. Food is a conduit to relationships with other people, and we enjoy bartering salmon and maple syrup for vegetables and wild game meat throughout the year with friends.
What is special about this recipe for you and your family?
The first time I met my wife it was at a potluck and she brought a salmon with this sauce on it. That was ten years ago and we have probably had the same meal a couple hundred times since then.

Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp Minced Garlic
- 2 Tbsp Olive Oil
- 2 Tbsp Maple Syrup
- 1 Tbsp Soy Sauce
Preparation
- Combine ingredients into a sauce pan.
- Simmer over medium heat.
- Apply over the top of cooked/grilled salmon.
This sauce is excellent over many other types of seafood or meat as well. (Recipe from Simple Gifts Syrup and Salmon.)