This recipe comes from Mexican Everyday by Rick Bayless. The recipes in this book could mostly be considered weeknight-friendly; no three-hour ordeals. We really enjoyed this dish, where salmon is simply seared and then topped with a mexican-inspired creamed spinach. We served it a simple steamed green-bean and red onion salad.

Is there anything better than a seared piece of salmon?

Lisa says:

I’m sure there is, but I can’t think of anything right now.

Chris says:

What do you think of the spinach?

Lisa says:

You’re right, it just tastes like creamed spinach, but better.

Chris says:

You can actually taste the masa harina in the spinach; I really like it.

Lisa says:

You, me and Popeye.

Seared Salmon with Spinach and Creamy Roasted Peppers
1 fresh poblano pepper
~5 cups cleaned spinach
1 1/2 tbsp olive oil
2 garlic cloves, peeled and halved
1 tbsp masa harina
3/4 cup fat-free milk
2 6-oz skinless salmon fillets
salt and pepper

Roast the poblanos over an open flame, turning regularly until blackened all over. Place in a small bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and set aside.
Steam or microwave the spinach just until wilted and set aside.
Turn the oven on to its lowest setting. In a very large skillet, heat the oil over medium heat. Add the garlic and cook, stirring regularly, until browned, about 4 minutes. Scoop into a blender and set the skillet aside.
Rub the skin off the poblano pepper with a paper towel and remove the seeds and stems. Roughly chop and add to the blender, along with the milk and masa harina. Blend until smooth.
Return the skillet to medium-high heat. Sprinkle both sides of the salmon with salt and pepper. Lay the fillets in the oil and cook until browned, about 3 minutes. Use a spatula to flip the fillets and cook until the fish just barely flakes when pressed. Transfer the fish to an ovenproof plate and set in the oven.
Pour the poblano mixture into the skillet and whisk until it boils, about a minute. Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer for about 5 minutes, whisking in some more milk if it gets too thick. Season, add the spinach, and stir until warmed throughout.
Top each salmon fillet with a portion of the sauce.

2 Servings

Here’s a dish we made a few weeks ago from The Ultimate Soup Bible. A salmon fillet is cut on the diagonal into thin slices which are seared and then placed into a bowl of steaming hot, richly-flavored broth and udon noodles. Baby bok choy adds color and some crunch.

Oh my god, it’s a miracle.

Chris says:

What?

Lisa says:

Okay, two miracles. One, you’re updating the blog. Two, the recipe doesn’t include mushrooms.

Chris says:

Since when are mushrooms a problem?

Lisa says:

They’re not… it’s just… I’ve gotten comments. I’ve heard things.

Chris says:

Uh…

Lisa says:

Yeah. People are starting to think that’s all we eat.

Chris says:

Well we do like mushrooms.

Lisa says:

That’s true… but… I’m just saying. That last post has been up there for a while. I was wondering if we were going to change the blog’s name to WeHeartShrooms.com…

Chris says:

Hey if that’s not registered yet, I’m gonna grab it. So…

Lisa says:

…yeah?

Chris says:

You want to talk about this dish at all?

Lisa says:

Oh yeah, right! I loved it! Those really thin slices of salmon were awesome. And I just love a big bowl of soup.

Chris says:

Same here — I hadn’t grilled such thin slices like that before. It worked out well. And those thick udon noodles are great for slurping. You know how much I love the slurping.

Lisa says:

Yes. Yes I do. And I guess if the biggest complaint about a dish is how loud it is when your dining partner eats it… well that’s really not much to complain about at all.

Salmon and Baby Bok Choy Ramen
6 cups vegetable stock
1 tbsp minced fresh ginger
2 garlic cloves, crushed
6 green onions, sliced
3 tbsp soy sauce
3 tbsp sake
1 lb salmon fillet, skinned
1 tsp peanut oil
12 oz udon noodles
4-5 baby bok choy, broken into leaves
1 fresh red chili pepper, seeded and sliced
1 cup bean sprouts
salt and pepper

Pour the stock into a pot and add the ginger, garlic, and a third of the green onions. Add the soy sauce and sake, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat and simmer for 30 minutes.
Meanwhile, cut the salmon at a severe angle into 12 slices. Brush a grill pan with the oil and heat until very hot. Sear the salmon slices for 1-2 minutes on each side until tender. Set aside.
Cook the udon noodles as per the directions, then drain and cool under cold running water. Drain again.
Strain the broth into a clean pot, season, and bring to a low boil. Add the bok choy.
Divide the noodles among 4 deep bowls, along with the salmon slices, green onions, chili, and bean sprouts. Ladle in the broth.

4 Servings.

I was looking for a dish that would go well with our Korean pancakes, and after a quick interwebs search I came across this dish at epicurious. Rather than the usual sirloin, this recipe uses salmon as the lucky recipient of a tasty, spicy marinade made with soy sauce, onions, ginger, sesame oil, and more. It’s served over a bed of baby bok choy and shiitake mushrooms. I only made slight modifications to the recipe — I doubled the marinade and upped the number of mushrooms. The sauce/glaze is deeelicious.

Yum, this is really good!

Chris says:

Yeah, I really like how the salmon is cooked.. super tender on the inside. And I think that’s the first time our oven’s been set at 500.

Lisa says:

Well mark it in the calendar.

Chris says:

… anyway … I loves me that marinade/glaze. It’s good on the veggies and the salmon.

Lisa says:

You know, that spicy red sauce from the pancakes is good on my salmon, too.

Chris says:

I’m sure that’s good on cardboard. I think we’re going to have to do more Korean recipes soon.

Bulgogi-Style Salmon with Bok Choy and Mushrooms
2 large garlic cloves, peeled, divided
1/3 cup chopped green onions
1/4 cup soy sauce
1 tbsp Chinese rice wine or dry Sherry
1 tsp minced fresh ginger
2 tsp sugar
1 tsp Asian sesame oil
1 tsp chili-garlic sauce
2 6-oz center-cut skinless salmon fillets
1 tbsp olive oil
5-6 baby bok choy, cut crosswise into 1/2-inch-wide strips (about 3 1/2 – 4 cups)
8 large fresh shiitake mushrooms, stemmed, caps sliced

Blend 1 garlic clove and next 7 ingredients in mini processor. Arrange salmon in a small glass baking dish. Spoon marinade over, and let marinate 5 minutes.
Preheat oven to 500°F. Transfer the fish, with some marinade still clinging, to a rimmed baking sheet. Roast the fish until just opaque in center, about 8 minutes. Meanwhile, transfer any remaining marinade to a small saucepan. Bring marinade in saucepan to boil; set aside and reserve for glaze.
Heat oil in large nonstick skillet over high heat. Add bok choy and mushrooms; using garlic press, press in 1 garlic clove. Stir-fry until mushrooms are tender and bok choy is wilted, about 4 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
Divide vegetables among two plates, top with the salmon, and brush with the glaze.

2 Servings

I came across this recipe a few days ago on the Mixed Greens Blog, and it really caught my eye. Not only because it can be completely made with local ingredients, but because of the addition of pork to the salmon. It seemed that the ground pork would make for a really juicy burger, and it certainly did! Interestingly, a single mashed potato also plays a role in this burger and provides additional texture. The recipe originally comes from Harumi’s Japanese Cooking.

These are awesome — so juicy!

Lisa says:

Wow, yeah, what’s in them?

Chris says:

Pretty simple, mostly salmon, onion, potato… ground pork…

Lisa says:

Ground pork? Hmmm… I like them better before you told me that.

Chris says:

What? Why? You know that directly contradicts the title of this post.

Lisa says:

I don’t know, it just sounds weird.

Chris says:

Well, just let your tastebuds be your guide.

Lisa says:

Obviously my tastebuds didn’t find it to be a strange combination. My plate’s looking pretty bare now.

Chris says:

Great success!

Salmon Burgers
12 oz. salmon
4 oz. ground pork
1/2 small onion
1 tbsp butter
1 small potato, peeled
1 small beaten egg
salt & pepper
vegetable oil for frying

Remove bones and skin from salmon and chop until it is almost ground.
Chop the onion finely and cook lightly in the butter. Leave to cool.
Steam the potato for 15-20 minutes until soft enough to mash. Mash with a fork and leave it to cool without adding anything.
In a large bowl mix the chopped salmon and ground pork. Add cooked onion, mashed potato, beaten egg, salt & pepper.
Shape the mixture into 8 small burgers. Heat oil in a frying pan and cook burgers for ~3 minutes on each sides. Serve with your favorite toppings. We enjoyed them with wasabi mayo and sweet/spicy chili sauce.

4 Servings

A very special guest post this evening from Lisa’s brother Chris (yes, another Chris…) and his girlfriend Jenn — a delicious Salmon Chowder from The Ultimate Soup Bible. C&J made an enormous cauldron of the chowder that fed nine or ten lucky souls over the course of two nights. I only had my point-and-shoot camera with me, so I wasn’t able to get as good a picture of the chowder as I normally would — guess, we’ll just have to make it ourselves! (As if we really needed an excuse…) We served the chowder with a few sides and salads we’ve made before, including these roasted yams, a salad featuring arugula and roasted bell peppers, and one featuring layered beets and avocados.

This is wonderful, who made this?

I really like that the broth isn’t super-thick like in a lot of chowders.

Tell Chris this chowder is better than a few others I’ve had recently…

Oooh, I like the corn in this. Good addition!

The dill is great — perfect amount.

Great success!

Salmon Chowder
1 1/2 tbsp butter
1 onion, finely chopped
1 leek, finely chopped
1 small fennel bulb, finely chopped
1/4 cup all-purpose flour
7 cups chicken stock
2 medium potatoes, cut into 1/2 inch cubes
1 lb salmon fillet, skinned and cut into 3/4 inch cubes
1 can corn, drained
3/4 cup milk
1/2 cup whipping cream
2 tbsp chopped fresh dill
salt and freshly ground pepper

Melt the butter in a large pan. Add the onion, leek, and fennel and cook for 6 minutes until softened. Stir in the flour and reduce the heat to low. Cook for 3 minutes, stirring occasionally with a wooden spoon. Add the chicken stock and potatoes to the mixture in the pan. Season with a little salt and black pepper. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat , cover, and simmer for 20 minutes or until the potatoes are tender. Add the salmon and simmer gently 3-5 minutes until just cooked. Stir in the corn, milk, cream, and chopped dill into the pan. Cook until just warmed through, stirring occasionally. Do not boil. To thicken, smash some of the potatoes against the side of the pot. Adjust the seasoning to taste, then ladle into warm bowls.

4 (large) Servings