Last Night’s Dinner

Project Pantry Cull took another small step forward last night, as I pulled out a long-neglected can of Wild Alaskan pink salmon and turned it into surprisingly tasty salmon “burgers.” I feel a bit silly referring to them as burgers because they were really more like croquettes, but I served them on little wheat rolls with a lemon-caper mayo and sweet potato oven fries on the side, so the spirit of the burger was there.

These were extremely simple to prepare: I drained off the liquid from the salmon, placed it into a big mixing bowl and removed as much of the skin and little bones as I could. I added one finely minced large shallot, salt, pepper, a beaten egg and some plain dry breadcrumbs, then formed the mixture into patties (I ended up with 3) and placed them in the fridge for about half an hour to firm up. They got a quick fry in a bit of olive oil in a hot cast iron skillet for about 3 minutes per side, then a quick blot on paper towels before I placed them on the rolls and dressed them.

This was really the first time I have cooked with canned salmon, but I was impressed by the flavor, and you can’t beat the price – I think our whole meal easily came in at under $10 – so I’ll definitely want to keep it on hand as a pantry staple. I went a little light on the seasonings for my burgers, but I think there’s definitely room to play around there as well – some fresh herbs, spicy mustard or zingy Asian seasonings would all be great additions to future versions of this recipe. If you have any favorite ways to prepare canned salmon, I’d love to hear about them.

As I’ve said before, I really believe that you eat with your eyes first, so I like to spend a little time on plating. Our dinner last night wasn’t anything fancy – a combination of beets, fingerlings and purple potatoes tossed with salt, olive oil and Herbes de Provence and then roasted in the oven, a salmon filet seasoned with salt and pepper and seared on the stovetop, my basic mustard vinaigrette and some pretty microgreens – but the presentation (and flavor) garnered a big “WOW” from my husband. It’s nice to know I can still knock his socks off from time to time.

When Copper River salmon was in season, Mike and I decided to stockpile it. We bought fillets four at a time, and for each two we ate fresh, we chucked two in the freezer for later use. It was a good strategy, ensuring that we’d have a supply of our favorite salmon to get us through until next season, but now that I need to make room in the freezer for stocks, tomato sauce and blanched summer veggies, the salmon has to go. Not all at once, of course, but we do need to start working through it.

I pulled a couple of fillets out of the freezer to thaw, and I spent the better part of yesterday trying to decide how to prepare them. It’s getting dark so early these days that grilling them was out of the question, and my other standard salmon preparations (pan-seared over lentils, or packet-cooked with tomato, olives and capers) weren’t sending me.

I did a search on foodandwine.com for inspiration, as I often do, and came across a photo of these gorgeous little nests of crispy potato, topped with smoked salmon, crème fraiche and chives. Though our salmon wasn’t smoked, the combination of flavors sounded delicious; Mike agreed and so I decided to try my hand at potato-crusted salmon. But I was nervous. Intimidated. Previous attempts at crusting anything have yielded less than stellar results, but I couldn’t get the idea out of my head, and I thought if it worked, it would be amazing. I had to take the risk.

When I got home I pulled the salmon out, patted it dry and seasoned it on both sides with kosher salt. I set it back in the fridge and got to work on the potato crust, peeling and grating two medium-ish Kennebec potatoes on the course holes of a box grater, and seasoning the mixture with salt and pepper. I wanted to give the potato a little more kick, so I decided to add three generous spoonfuls of Wheelhouse horseradish to the mix. I pulled my salmon out of the fridge and pressed the mixture into the flesh and sides of the fillets, then put them back in the fridge to firm up a bit.

After about 20 minutes, I preheated my oven to 400, got a thin layer of olive oil warming in the cast iron skillet, and opened the fridge to retrieve the salmon fillets. And they looked wet. Really, really wet. The moisture in the potatoes had leeched out forming a soggy puddle around the salmon, and I was a little freaked out, but we had to eat. I pressed forward, placing my hand over the fillets to keep them on the platter and tipping the excess liquid out into the sink. And then it was show time.

I gently lifted the first salmon fillet off of the platter. I had two fish spatulas in play, but I was having a hard time trying to figure out just how to gently get the fish off of the spatula and into the hot oil without losing the whole crust or splattering hot oil all over, so I ended up just taking it in my hands and gently flipping it into the pan, potato side down. It sizzled and popped, but it was in the pan and the crust appeared to be intact. I added the second fillet to the pan, stepped back, and waited.

When I saw that the edges of the crust looked nice and brown and crisp, I took one of the spatulas and tried to scoot it under the fish; every recipe I had seen online said to flip the fillets so the crust side was up before finishing them in the oven, but mine wouldn’t budge. Again, I felt a little wave of panic in my belly, but I decided to just place them in the oven as-is and see what happened. I let them bake in the oven for 5 minutes, then removed the skillet. I shimmied the spatula under the first fillet, and flipped. It was beautiful. I did the same with the second fillet, and I decided to place them back in the oven skin-side down for just a few minutes more to crisp up.

And just like that, the scariest part was over. I pulled it off. I was incredibly nervous that I wouldn’t, but I did, and those salmon fillets, moist inside and enveloped in a crisp potato exterior, were fabulous. I tend not to be a risk-taker in the kitchen or elsewhere, but this is one time I’m definitely glad I went for it.

Okay, so we actually ate this on Thursday night, but as I mentioned, our computer died and we had to replace it before I could unload photos and write this up.

I rarely follow recipes to the letter, but when it comes to Marcella Hazan’s dishes, I always do. I spotted her recipe for marinated fish with salmoriglio sauce in the September issue of Food and Wine, and I knew I wanted to try it. This sauce is traditionally served with swordfish, but Marcella mentions in the recipe notes that it works well with other fish, too. I had already pulled a couple of Copper River sockeye salmon fillets out of the freezer to thaw, so I used those, and they worked beautifully. If you’re looking for a super easy way to dress up a simple piece of fish, definitely give this a try - the sauce is a breeze to prepare, and it’s delicious.

Neither the meal nor the day turned out quite as I had hoped – Mother Nature interfered in a number of ways, beginning with the ill-timed disappearance of our resident mama cat and her consort (just before we were scheduled to take them in to be fixed), and culminating with the strange weather that blew through last evening. We wanted to grill, we kept checking the skies and the satellite maps hoping we could squeeze it in between bursts of rain and lightning, and when what we thought was a good opportunity came, we jumped. The chimney starter lit, coals glowing red, and wouldn’t you know it, we had to scurry back indoors as lightning flashed overhead. Maddening. But we had committed. Our fire burned strong through the burst of rain and when the clouds passed, we rushed to get our food on the grill.

We have been stockpiling Copper River salmon in our freezer so we can stretch out its short season, and I had thawed two filets for our meal. I seasoned them with nothing more than a healthy amount of kosher salt and some olive oil, and Mike grilled them skin side down over indirect heat for about 8-10 minutes.

I’ve been eager to try this recipe for grilled fava bean pods, so when Mike was able to get some on Monday, I earmarked them for this meal. We placed the whole fava bean pods on the hot side of the grill until they were charred, then I tossed them with olive oil, chile flakes and kosher salt. Somehow we were out of lemons (this never happens at our place), so I added a little bit of sherry vinegar for acidity, and I used chopped spring onion tops instead of the scallions called for in the original recipe. I tossed some baby wild arugula with a mustard vinaigrette to go along with the salmon and favas.

I was mostly pleased with this meal, though I do think we left the favas on the grill a couple of minutes too long. Some of the pods got really black and weren’t particularly tasty, though the ones that were less charred and still showed a bit of green were quite nice. The beans themselves were delicious, creamy with a smoky, nutty flavor. When we do this again, I think we’ll still char the whole pods, but then I’ll pop the beans out of the pods and toss them with the vinaigrette – it’s a nice combination of flavors.

I’m a little alarmed that today is already the last day of May, but I love that we are heading full-speed into summer and all its bounty. Our little garden is flourishing, and while early spring treats are on their way out of season, we’ve got many things to look forward to. I’ll admit that I often feel a bit like I’m cheating when preparing meals this time of year, though. When the raw ingredients I’m working with are so fresh and good, I hate to do too much to them, so my “recipes” become very pared down and cooking is more like assembly.

We enjoyed the first fresh wild Copper River salmon of the year last night, and it was absolutely worth waiting for. Gorgeous to look at and richly flavored, this salmon needs little adornment, so Mike just seasoned it with salt and pepper, rubbed it with a bit of olive oil, and grilled it briefly over hot hardwood coals. Once the salmon came off the grill to rest, I sautéed some chopped spring onions, fiddleheads and cut asparagus in a bit of olive oil, and tossed a salad of butter lettuce and tomato with a goat-cheese and buttermilk vinaigrette. I think it actually took longer for Mike to get the grill going than it did for us to put our meal together, but I’m not going to complain – it just gave us more time to savor our food and enjoy the evening.

Wine Pairing: We usually drink Pinot Noir with our salmon, but when Talitha at Vine Wine was suggesting options for me last night, she was very enthusiastic about this Paumanok Riesling and how it would pair with our meal. It’s always fun to switch things up a bit, and as I’ve mentioned, we are definitely interested in trying as many local wines as possible, so I grabbed a bottle. It was a spot-on recommendation – the wine was crisp and minerally, which cut right through the richness of the salmon.

We had a rather eventful evening last night which still has me a bit distracted, but I did manage to get a meal on the table: wild Alaskan salmon filets, grilled on cedar planks and basted with a mixture of miso paste, grainy Dijon, a splash of tamari and a little canola oil. To accompany the salmon, I seasoned some asparagus spears with salt and pepper, tossed them with a bit of dark sesame oil, and sealed them in a foil packet; the pouch cooked on the grill as well. Rounding out our meal was a salad of tatsoi leaves tossed in a rice wine vinaigrette. Quick and tasty.

I’m a bit under the weather, so today you just get the photo.

We eat salmon fairly often, as it is healthy, sustainable, and easy to prepare in a variety of ways. One of my favorite ways to eat it is paired with lentils - there’s something about the way the richness of the fish works with the earthiness of the lentils that is really pleasing. This is a simple but elegant meal that is great to have in your repertoire for nights when you don’t have a lot of time to spend on getting dinner on the table - start to finish it usually takes me a little over half an hour.

For the lentils, I start by sauteeing a chopped shallot with a couple of tablespoons of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Once the shallot is softened, add a cup of lentils (I use the tiny green puy lentils, but you can use whatever variety you like - with the possible exception of red lentils, which won’t hold their shape), plus two cups of water and a sprig of fresh thyme. Cover the pot and let it simmer for 25-30 minutes, until the lentils are tender but still have a little bite to them. Once they are cooked, stir through about a tablespoon each of sherry vinegar and olive oil.

The salmon is even easier to prepare, and takes just minutes to cook while the lentils are simmering away. Coat the inside of a cast iron skillet with a thin layer of olive oil and heat it until it is almost smoking, then reduce the heat to medium. Season the salmon filets with kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, and place them into the hot pan skin side down. Cook the filets for about five or six minutes on the first side, then flip them and allow them to finish cooking on the other side for another 3 minutes. (The most important thing to remember with the salmon is once it goes into the pan, don’t move it around before you flip it - you want the skin to get really crispy so the fish won’t fall apart when you flip it, and allowing it to cook undisturbed will make that happen.)

Using a slotted spoon, place the lentils in a shallow bowl and lay a salmon filet on top. Toss a simple salad, pour a glass of Cotes du Rhone, and enjoy.

Nothing too fancy last night - I took a couple of wild Alaskan sockeye salmon filets, seasoned them with salt, spread a mixture of grainy mustard and wasabi on the flesh side, and sprinkled a layer of panko over the top. These went into a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes, then were briefly blasted under the broiler to brown the crust.

Harold McGee posted about red rice on his blog yesterday, which reminded me that I had an unopened bag of Bhutanese red rice in the cupboard. I figured it would be as good a night as any to try it, and Mike and I were both pleased with the flavor and the texture of it. The rice was a beautiful color, and had a nice nuttiness and bite to it.

I had spaced on a vegetable accompaniment, so I mixed up a quick vinaigrette using rice wine vinegar, ponzu, and sesame and canola oils, and tossed it with some mixed lettuces and carrots.

Wine Note: We drank the 2005 Channing Daughters Sauvignon, an absolutely beautiful Sauvignon Blanc/Chardonnay blend.