BEFORE:
AFTER:
Ask….and you shall receive!
So I was asked by a good friend if I planned to blog mostly about the red meat “beast” dishes I prefer, or if I would be featuring any seafood. What?! Turf with no surf? NEVER!! Here ya go Jenn… 🙂
D & D Crusted Salmon…comin’ right up!
Weapons you’ll need:
- (2) Medium sized stainless steel pans (no cancer-causing teflon please or plastic handles as the pan will go in the oven)
- Fish spatula (preferably…regular spatula will do)
- Oven with stove-top
- Tongs
- Plate
- Fork
- Knife
- Wine Glass 😉
Ammunition:
- 6 to 8oz fillet of Salmon (per person) – I suggest leaving the skin on the one side, but you can remove it is preferred
- Dill (1st “D”)
- Dijon Mustard (2nd “D”)
- Goat Cheese
- Panko Bread Crumbs
- Olive Oil (ALWAYS!)
- Arugula
- Roma Tomato
- Shallot
- Lemon
- Sea Salt
- Cracked Black Pepper
- Bottle of nice Chablis (nice French style Chardonnay…but drink what YOU like!)
As usual, do ALL your prep first! When the time comes to actually cook…you should be ready to do just that. Cook! When it comes to kitchen intimidation, I think most of the anxiety people experience comes from not being set up and ready. That’s why things begin to burn etc….because you’re trying to “hurry and chop something”, or “trying to find the…blah, blah, blah…”. Chop it, dice it, measure it out, put it in a ramekin, zest it, season it, grate it…then line it all out. NOW, you’re ready to cook!
Turn the oven to 350 to preheat.
Season the top side of your salmon with sea salt, cracked black pepper and a generous coating of dill. In a small bowl, mix 1 tbsp of goat cheese and 1 tbsp of dijon with a few drops of lemon juice and mix together until it’s even and spreadable. Have your panko crumbs handy close by. In another small bowl (or ramekin), add a few drops of lemon to 1 tbsp of olive oil. Mix and set aside.
Julienne both your Roma tomato and your shallot. Have a generous “handful” of arugula ready to go as well.
Heat 2 tbsp of olive oil in your pan over medium-high heat. We are about to “sear” the salmon, so be cautious… The oil will be very hot and a bit of smoke might be generated for a minute while you’re searing…turn on your fan and take precaution with the smoke detector…haha! Once the oil begins to “ripple” a bit (it is important to note that this happens before the smoking point. It is important as you don’t want to “burn” your oil), quickly and carefully lay your salmon into the oil, dill-coated side down. Grab the pan handle and lightly, but vigorously wiggle the pan so that the fish moves slightly back and forth (this is done so that the fish does not “cook” to the pan and stick. Allowing the layer of oil to stay between the fish and the actual pan by wiggling it back and forth allows the fish to “sear”. This should happen quickly…just wiggle it for about 5 seconds or so. Now set the pan back down on the burner and allow the fish to sear there until golden brown on that side (probably check it in about 1 minute or so).
Once golden brown, flip the fish over onto the skin side and wiggle so that all the skin comes in contact will some oil. Now turn the burner off. Lightly spread your goat cheese dijon evenly and generously over the newly crusted dill. Then generously sprinkle the panko bread crumbs over the spread. Now drizzle (with a spoon) the lemon/olive oil mixture evenly over the bread crumbs. Place the pan with the fish on the top rack of the oven and close the oven door. Shut the oven off (as it should now be preheated to 350) and turn it to “low broil”. Set your timer for 5 minutes.
When your timer goes off, turn your oven to “high broil” and begin to look in on the salmon often. You want the bread crumbs to lightly toast over…the whole cooking process should really only take about 8 to 9 minutes for medium rare salmon, which is how any chef would recommend it be cooked. Burning can happen quickly when you’re using high broil, so be sure to watch this closely. Pull your salmon out and place up on top of the stove (no heat).
{If you want it cooked more, turn the broiler off and move the salmon down to the low rack and shut the oven door. It will stay hot enough in the oven to continue to cook the salmon up to the temperature you desire.}
At the point you turn the oven to high broil, grab your second pan. Add 2 tbsp of olive oil and place over medium heat. Once the “ripple” effect happens in the oil, turn to low-medium heat and add your shallots. Let them “sweat” (not cook / carmelize by any means) by tossing them lightly in the oil for a moment. All at once, add a light squeeze of lemon juice to the pan along with your tomatoes and arugula. Turn the heat off or remove from the heat (You are lightly heating, not “cooking” the tomatoes or arugula so you don’t want direct heat or it will wilt). Toss the mixture in the pan (tongs may make this process easier).
Slowly loosen (if necessary) the salmon from the pan with your spatula (often easier with a fish spatula) and use it to move the salmon to one side of the plate. Then plate your arugula salad (using your tongs) along side of the salmon.
Now for goodness sake, pour the wine! 😉
Some enjoy actually eating the salmon skin. Personally I just enjoy flaking the fish off of the skin (when I finish this dish, there is just a perfect rectangle of salmon skin lefton the plate…nothing else. haha! It’s delicious!) I suggest getting some of the salad along with the salmon in every bite. I designed the dish to hit all taste buds. The dijon and the arugula provide a little spice, the goat cheese along with the olive oil provides a certain creaminess, while along with the shallots provides a little sweetness. The lemon and tomatoes provide the acidic backbone to balance this all out with the delicious, savory salmon.
Don’t forget! Bite of food…followed by a sip of vino. Clears the palette so every bite is as grand as the first!
Bon Appetit 🙂
Cook at home --> NO ifs, ands or BUTTER 