Simple and Super Salmon

Last night we had the best salmon we have eaten in a long time. I don't know if it's because we now are yuppies and shop at the PCC for organic salmon (I tend not to think that this makes a difference), or if it was just the recipe.

It was a recipe from Real Simple that I tore out when I was back in CT. It was also so good that I ate it so fast that I couldn't take a picture!

What you need to make this:
- At least on pound of salmon (we made 1.5 pounds) - Ideally already with the skin removed, but I'm not sure it truly matters. I was able to remove the skin QUITE well if I do say so myself.
- Cilantro (big bunch - enough for 1/2 a cup chopped)
- One lemon (ok here Tom and I do agree that the organic ones are just so much juicier than the non-organic ones that we feel we have been missing out for years.)
- Scallions (3-4) chopped
- A few tablespoons of olive oil
- Cous-cous (and by default....broth to cook the cous-cous with)

How to make this:
1. Chop up the scallions and the cilantro.
2. In a bowl mix the juice of one lemon with the scallions and cilantro and two tablespoons of olive oil. Stir it all up and set aside.
3. Remove the skin from your salmon (I did this with a combination of cutting and pulling)
4. Make your cous-cous (I made the whole box and I made it with chicken broth for flavor)
5. In a frying pan add 1-2 tablespoons of olive oil. On both sides of your salmon (Unless one side has skin) sprinkle a little bit of salt, pepper, and paprika. When the pan is hot add the salmon. Cook about 3-4 minutes per side. This obviously depends on how fat your salmon is. Our skinnier pieces were done in about 8 minutes and our giant ones took 10-12 minutes.
6. Put the cous-cous and salmon the plate. Drizzle with the lemon/oil/cilantro/scallion sauce.

One last plug for lemons...I almost wrote an entire post about how much I adore organic lemons. Seriously they juice amazingly and have less seeds and are all around worth the money. I squeezed the heck out of mine and then I proceeded to eat what was left (yep mom...I still eat lemons! So much for my tooth enamel).

Whitefish with veggies

For this recipe it calls for cod, but I have used sole and it was tasty that way too.

First chop up a green pepper nice and small. Then slice some tomatoes and the recipe calls for chopped onion but I was out so I used scallions. I don't think it was any different.

In a separate bowl add about 1/2 a cup of breadcrumbs (this time I used Panko flakes and they were great). To the breadcrumbs add a few sprinkles of olive oil. Either add some chopped fresh basil or some dried basil to the mixture and stir it around.

Place the fish on a greased (just in case it sticks) baking pan. Put the tomato slices on top and then the green peppers. Add the breadcrumb mixture and then the onions or scallions. Bake at 375 for about 25 minutes. It all depends on the thickness of your fish fillets, so if they are thin they might need a little less time. If they are super thick they might need more.

I like to squeeze lemon juice over it all when it comes out of the oven and I'd serve it with rice or cous-cous. We ate it with Israeli cous-cous  (my first time making it) and I was not super excited with it because it was so pasta-like. I think this one goes better with regular cous-cous!

Soy/Mustard Glazed Salmon

Just a heads up. You do not need a grill for this, but I swear it makes it taste better.

Ingredients are:

Once again, notice my Mom's fabulous handwriting.

I like all of the proportions of this recipe, but looking at it I realize that I have NEVER added the horseradish. I want to say that I never have it in the fridge, but actually sometimes I do. I think the addition of the horseradish would probably be awesome, but I haven't done it, so if you don't have it, just skip it.

Put all of the ingredients (except the salmon) into a bowl and whisk it together. When I made this last week I added some stone ground mustard and I am convinced it made it better than ever before - so do that if you have some. Or just add some of the mustard seeds if you have those. I have those (you will see why when I post how to make my mom's most amazing salad dressing).

Put the salmon into a container with sides. I use a 13 x 9 baking pan. Pour or spoon about half of the glaze on top of the salmon. I like to let it sit while I (or Tom) heat up the grill. If you need to broil it then heat up your broiler. I think that people say to leave the door of your oven part way open when broiling. I am not sure about this and I always open and close it while worrying that I will blow up the oven or something.

Grill the salmon on a high heat on the grill for about 12 minutes. Half way through the grilling I would pour the rest of the glaze on the salmon. This will cause a minor flare up on the gas or charcoal grill...but I think it makes it taste even better and smokier! We always want to over-grill it, but I think 12-14 minutes (unless you have an insanely FAT salmon) is enough. You don't want to dry it out!

I like to serve this with cous-cous. Normally I serve it with what I call "normal cous-cous" that I have cooked in chicken broth. I do 1 cup cous-cous to 1 cup chicken broth. This time I served it with sushi rice which is just so delightfully sticky and wonderful. I bought this brand rice at an Asian Market and I love it. I'm pretty sure it's from Cali. Notice the SUPER cool green top??? I got that in my stocking. It is so super cool. It goes on to packages that have no tops, and it makes it have a top. That might be the worst explanation ever, but I am in love with it. Thanks Liane!

I just recently made Israeli cous-cous, so you could try that too - but I feel that it has a bit too much of a pasta feel for me.

Notice Tom's snazzy headlight. And to my brother, Tom is using your wedding present!!! And Allison don't look too closely, that is totally your paper towel dispenser.