In the Kitchen

January 9, 2009, 4:47 pm

Simple Salmon

One of our favorite dinners is salmon with a veggie and/or a salad. Salmon is so tasty when cooked properly, not overcooked or overly fussed with. We prefer ours simply prepared; only salt and freshly ground pepper are added. A special treat for us is that we keep the skin on and cook it to a crisp –mmm, salty, crispy goodness, like a chip.

We start the cooking process on top of the stove in an ovenproof frying pan at medium-high heat to sear the skin. Salmon is a fatty fish, so oil isn’t needed; if necessary, we’ll use a non-stick spray first. The salmon is finished in the oven, this way there isn’t a need to turn the fish over and because direct heat has been removed from the pan, the bottom won’t burn while the salmon continues to cook. Oven temp is 400˙ degrees; cooking time will depend on the size of fish and how far it cooked while on top of the stove (you can actually see salmon cook –it changes color). At 400˙ degree’s, we check after 8 minutes.

Don’t cook your salmon to death; remember, the fish continues to cook after it’s taken off the heat. The center flesh should be moist and have a deep pink color, the outside will be a …salmon color –ha!

We have always eaten farmed salmon, but recently we’ve learned that wild salmon is much better nutritionally. Wild salmon has more Omega-3 fats which our bodies need and more protein per serving. To learn about farmed vs. wild salmon, read about it here.

Here’s a tip for leftovers:

Flake salmon on a salad the next day for lunch. Heck this is so good and filling, we have it for dinner often. Mixed greens, green onions, salmon, homemade balsamic vinaigrette and if there are leftover roasted veggies that sound good (roasted asparagus is my favorite), we add them to the mix.

Also, wild salmon isn't cheap, so buying one piece and adding it to a salad is one way to get the healthful benefits of the fish without breaking the bank.

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