Salmon Challenge (July)

[abjcooking]

As promised here is the link to norgeskog's maple mustard salmon
Maple Mustard Salmon

[abjcooking]

I haven't prepared this recipe this month, but it is one I have done in the past that has been a favorite in my family if you wish to give it a try.

Soy Salmon

2 (15oz.) bottles low sodium soy sauce
3/4 cup dark brown sugar
2 T. fresh ginger, grated or minced
small handful star anise or a pinch of the anise spice
2 lbs. salmon fillet, cut in individual portions
scallions for garnish

In a 12" saute pan combine first 4 ingredients and bring to a gentle boil and then reduce to a simmer.

Place salmon skin side down and slosh liquid over top of salmon. The liquid should come up the side of the salmon most of the way. Cover and poach for 8 minutes or until done. Remove and keep warm.

Bring the rest of the liquid to a boil and reduce by half until syrupy. Drizzle on top of salmon and garnish with green onions.

[Alix]

Thanks abjcooking, those are both yummy looking.

[pdswife]

Shaffer's Salmon dip

1 pound smoked salmon
1 pound cream cheese
1 pound sour cream
1.5 tablespoon worcestershire sauce
1 teaspoon tabasco sauce ( I sometimes use a little more)
2 tablespoons Hidden Valley Ranch dressing mix
1/2 cup finely chopped green onions ( I sometimes use more)
1/2 cup finely chopped red peppers ( I always use a little more)
1 teaspoon black pepper

Mix all the above together and chill. It makes a very pretty dip.
It is wonderful on crusty French bread.

Enjoy!!!

[Poppinfresh]

Ask and ye shall receive. Those of us in the Pac. Northwest know our salmon (and we have access to steelhead, nyah nyah). This recipe is, of course, done on the grill:

Grilled salmon with a sweet guava-based barbecue sauce

What you'll need:

4 6 ounce salmon fillets (I prefer steelhead or even coho, but understand that unless you live west coast these can be hard to find)
3/4 cup guava nectar
1/4 cup EVOO
Kosher or sea salt
Pepper
Guava barbecue sauce (under this)
A cup of wood chips (I prefer cherry, but oak, alder, lemon, and cedar wood all work well too)

--Guava barbecue sauce:

2 cups guava nectar
4T butter
kosher or sea salt
pepper
a clove of crushed garlic
1t hot sauce
1t balsamic vinegar
1t worcestershire sauce
1T lime juice (gotta be fresh...doesn't work with processed, for some reason)
2T tomato paste

For the sauce:

Drop the nectar in large saucepan over med-high and bring it up to a boil. Reduce to about 1 cup--should take like 7 minutes or so. Whisk in the butter, worcestershire, vinegar, garlic, hot sauce, tomato paste, and the lime juice. Reduce the heat and simmer until it thickens...whisk occasionally to keep it from getting ugly. Add salt and pepper. From there , give it a taste and adjust it to your liking (more Worcestershire, vinegar, lime juice, hot sauce etc.). Make sure to serve this warm

Now for the fish:

Yank the bones, obviously. rinse and dry them. Season both sides with the salt and pepper. Put the fish in a large plastic bag and add the guava nectar and olive oil to it. Kinda mush it around some (don't damage the fish), toss it in the fridge and marinate it for about an hour.

Fire your grill up to high. Get your wood chips in a smoker tray or smoker pouch (don't say you don't have either...all you need is aluminum foil and a fork...), toss it on the burner plates, cover and wait for smoke.

Get the fish out of the marinade. Spray the grill grates down with some form of oil (I prefer grapeseed, but I guess most kinds with a high smoke point will work). Takes about 4-5 minutes a side to cook them through. If you like grill marks (as you should), place the salmon down diagonally on the grate and then give em a quarter turn halfway through cooking on each side.

During the last 2 minutes of cooking, brush some of the barbecue sauce on the fish each minute. Remove, spoon over more of the sauce over the salmon and dig in.

[Banana Brain]

I just put in a quarter pound sockeye fillet just for myself (I'm from Oregon, I picked up the fish from a local deli) in the oven and I basically just threw on some olive oil, margerine, dill, garlic, and pepper really fast and put 'er in. I'm hungry, ok?

[Dina]

Are we still on for this one Alix?

Here's a Cumin-Crusted Salmon with Guacamole

2 tbs ground cumin
3/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper
4 (5-6oz) salmon fillets
2 tsp olive oil
1 cup refrigerated prepared guacamole

Heat oven to 425 degrees. In small bowl, stir together cumin, salt, pepper; sprinkle over salmon.
Heat oil i large ovenproof nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until hot. Add salmon; cook 2 minutes or until browned. Turn; place in oven. Bake 5 to 8 minutes or until salmon just begins to flake. Serve salmon topped with guacamole.

[Alix]

Yes Dina we are. That sounds lovely! I haven't done mine yet. I will do it soon though.

[Steve A]

My most recent favorite salmon dish is much like that Maple-mustard salmon posted earlier. However, I take it a step further by coating the salmon in the maple mustard then wrapping it in apple smoked bacon.

Sear in a hot pan then put it in the oven. It's almost hard to OVER cook it as the bacon continues to baste the salmon as it renders.

Feel free to try it. Great stuff, that.

Ciao,

[ironchef]

Here's one that I got published on another site. Real simple to make. You can even add other spices to the garam masala and make tandoori salmon:

http://seafood.allrecipes.com/AZ/107217.asp