I love salmon. It is easy to cook but always looks great on the plate. A good salmon dish will impress at a dinner party or just add some variety to a repetitive weekly meal plan.
This recipe is from much-loved Australian cook, restaurateur and food author Maggie Beer – so you know it will be delicious. This could be the perfect Good Friday meal or maybe one to send to your partner as a hint for a Mother’s Day dinner …
Maggie Beer’s crispy skin salmon with pea puree
Ingredients
- 1 tbspn unsalted butter
- 4 thick salmon steaks, skin on
- To taste salt flakes
- 1 tbspn Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 4 wedges lemon
- 1 1/2 cup frozen peas
- 15g unsalted butter
- 2 tspn Extra Virgin Olive Oil
- 2 golden shallots peeled and chopped
- 3/4 cup Chicken Stock
- 1 sprig chervil
- 1 tbspn lemon juice
- To taste salt flakes
Salmon
Frozen pea salsa
Instructions
- Spread peas on a tray to thaw for 10 minutes.
- Place a large frying pan over medium heat, add the butter and melt with the Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Add the chopped shallots and sauté until soft.
- In another small sauce pan, bring the Chicken Stock to the boil.
- Add the peas to the shallots along with chervil and lemon juice.
- Pour the hot Chicken Stock over the peas and quickly bring up to the boil again, then remove from the heat and allow to cool slightly.
- Pour the pea mixture into a blender or mouli and process until fine. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary.
- Heat a large frying pan over a moderate heat with half the butter.
- Season the salmon on the skin side with sea salt.
- Once the pan is hot, add a dash of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and place the salmon steaks skin side down in the pan. Cook for about 2 minutes or until the skin is crisp. Putting the salmon aside, quickly wipe out the pan with a paper towel.
- Return salmon to pan, add the remaining butter and return to heat.
- Once melted, turn the steaks over with tongs and almost immediately take the pan off the heat and allow to sit in the hot pan. The centre of the fish should be a little rare.
- To serve, pile a layer of salsa on to a plate and place the fish on top. Squeeze a wedge of lemon over each piece of salmon, sprinkle the herbs on top and dress with a drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil.
Recipe and image kindly supplied by Aussie Farmers Direct – delivering Easter essentials over the break.