Wednesday, July 21, 2010

Fish!

Did you know that wild-caught sockeye salmon tastes vastly different from farmed salmon? It does - and enough different to change me from a salmon-hater (except for lox and salmon croquettes) to a salmon lover.

There is a uniqueness of taste to wild salmon that I look forward to experimenting with, but for my first preparation I used a Publix recipe as a jump-off point.

Coriander Salmon with Easy Dill Sauce; Cucumber Heart Salad

1 1/4 pounds sockeye salmon, skinned and cut into serving-sized pieces
sea salt, coriander, fresh pepper, EV olive oil

Light Sour cream, fresh dill


Salad

Two cucumbers, peeled, seeded, and chopped
one can artichoke hearts, chopped
One lemon, juiced and zested
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
3/4 cup diced red onion
5-6 oz bag roquette (arugula)

Whisk lemon zest and juice with oil, sea salt to taste and a little crushed garlic if you like. Toss the salad ingredients with the dressing - remember to use good olive oil for salads. DaVinci is among the best tasting grocery store oils you can get.

Mix 3/4 cup sour cream and 4 tbl of chopped dill, set aside (squeeze whatever is left of your lemon into the mix even if that amounts to an eighth of a teaspoon; it does add piquancy).

While the salad is setting up and melding flavors, rinse and pat dry the salmon. Season with about two teaspoons of coriander per side and a pinch of sea salt, fresh ground pepper. Press the seasoning into the fish, heat oil on medium high heat until water sizzles in pan. Add fish and cook about 4 1/2 minutes per side. The fish will look opaque and feel firm when done. Take up to plate, add sour cream mixture to pan and whisk for about 30 seconds to warm.

Add salad to plates, overlap with Salmon and drizzle fish with dill sauce.

One another note, my youngest kittens are black twins who have wide blue eyes and look like tiny bears. They have wrapped my husband around their miniature claws:)