Salmon is a fish that can be found regularly and in abundance in Canadian stores. It is quick and easy to cook. Normally all it takes is a sprinkle of salt and/or garlic powder and broiling for 20-25 minutes and voila, dinner is ready!
There are certainly many other recipes that create much more complex and refined flavours. One of them is the Smoked Salmon recipe that I blogged about not that long ago. Today I am presenting another recipe but this time with Indian slant. The dish highlight is a delicious aromatic sauce that makes a wonderful companion to a flavor infused, broiled salmon.
The added benefit is that the recipe is such that the dish can be prepared ahead of time and then finished on demand, as required. That is not a small feat, especially when you expect larger crowd and like to cook them something as exquisite and delicious as Salmon Curry. On December 19th was our family Slava, St. Nicholas and this was a dish that I prepared for a family and guests. I prepared it a day ahead and all it took was a finishing off with broil as the sauce was warming up on our stove. It took about 20 minutes to have it ready and plated. It was an instant hit and it was gone within 15 minutes. Everybody loved the taste and highly praised the flavorful sauce.
The recipe is fairly simple and easy to follow. The only part that poses slightly risk is at the end of the sauce making, when the coconut cream is added. If not being careful and allow cream to boil, it will separate and create an oily mess. Be attentive, watch it carefully, stirring constantly and cooking only for a couple of minutes.
Enjoy this wonderful recipe that was adapted from chef Greg Easter!
| Prep Time | 30 minutes |
| Cook Time | 35 minutes |
| Passive Time | 2 hours |
| Servings |
servings
|
- 1 tsp Coriander seeds whole
- 1 Cinamon stick 2.5 cm (1") long piece
- 1 Dried Red Serrano Chili
- 1/2 tsp Mustard seeds
- 4 garlic cloves
- 4 green Cardamom pods
- 4 Allspice whole
- 1 1/2 tsp dark brown sugar ideally Cassonade
- 1 tsp sea salt
- 1/4 tsp citric acid
- 1 tbsp spice blend
- 1 tbsp garlic crushed
- 1 tbsp vegetable oil
- 1-2 tbsp vegetable oil
- 45 g onion coarsely chopped
- 1 tsp Cumin seeds whole
- 1-2 tbsp Ginger peeled and cut into 2.5 mm (1/8") strips
- 1 green Serrano chili sliced
- 1 Bay leaf
- 2 tsp spice blend
- 90 g Italian tomato purée (passata)
- 300 g Salmon fillet marinated in spice blend
- 110 g Coconut cream not sweetened
Ingredients
Spice blend
Fish marinade
Cooking ingredients
|
|
- Toast the coriander seeds, cinnamon stick, dried chili, mustard seeds, cloves, cardamom and allspice until the mustard seeds start to pop. In order to do this properly, it is critical to preheat the cast iron pan to 148ºC (300ºF) before putting spices in the pan. Move the pan in a circular motion to allow spice seeds to roll and avoid burning. Manually turn larger flat sided pieces of serrano chili and cinnamon stick. Transfer spices in a small bowl and let cool for 2-3 minutes.
- Put the spices into a coffee grinder along with brown sugar, salt and citric acid. Grind to a fine powder and store in a small jar.
- In a small bowl, stir to combine spice blend with garlic and oil. Coat the salmon with marinade on both sides, cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 1-4 hours.
- In a medium size pan, add oil and over medium heat ( 5 out of 10 ) fry onions until translucent, about 3 minutes.
- Add cumin seeds, green chili and ginger. Stir frequently and cook for another 3 minutes.
- Add bay leaf and spice blend, cook for 30 seconds stirring constantly. Add tomato purée and reduce the heat to medium low (4 out of 10) or lower. You want to have it simmering and not boiling. Cook for another 10 minutes or until masala thickens up. Stir frequently to prevent burning.
- Reduce heat to low (3 out of 10) and place salmon fillet on top of the masala. Put the lid on and cook for 6 minutes.
- Carefully turn the salmon fillet over with a wide spatula so it does not fall apart, cover and continue cooking for another 3 minutes. Gently remove salmon to plate and carefully scrape off any chunks of spice or onions that are holding on to the salmon. If you don't these will turn bitter after broiling. Note: depending on thickness of a salmon fillet these cooking times might be longer (thick fillet) or shorter (thin fillet).
- Increase the heat to medium (5 out of 10)and add coconut cream. Cook only for 2 minutes and stir constantly, bringing it to simmer. Don't boil it or coconut cream will separate.
- Pass the sauce through a sieve and rub to get as much through as possible.
- Broil the salmon filet until golden on the top.
- Brush with melted butter and sprinkle with a little lemon juice. Garnish with fresh cilantro.
No Comments