How much do we like salmon... TOO MUCH!! We love our salmon in soft tacos, in pasta, on pizza, in scrambled eggs... seriously, we'd probably eat it on a flip flop. Love simple salmon, and this couldn't get any simpler. Before I horrify you with the size of the salmon we... uh... devoured, you should know that we're feeding boys here, and they're, furnace-burning, calorie killing athletes, so, yah, we eat A LOT OF SALMON (she said, slightly embarrassed).
So, I used to do all this labor intensive "stuff" to my salmon... chop garlic, slice lemons, layer it with fresh chopped parsley. While all well and good, the way I did it tonight is so flipping easy and delicious, I do it like this all the time! Fast and easy and super tasty! (Prepare to be horrified by what we consider a family size portion of salmon! Guilty!! We LOVE salmon!)
I know, she's a biggie... and she'll be gone soon! So, first, I line a sheet pan with foil and put a rack on. I spray the rack, because I like my salmon "skin on" and skin sticks! I'll remove the fish from the skin when done. I lay her down and brush her with a little (no more than a teaspoon of) olive oil.
Next I take, let's say, 2 whole minutes, to sprinkle salt and fresh ground pepper, garlic powder, and the zest of one lemon onto the top. BOOM! Done! Set your oven to 450 degrees and get your salmon in there!
15-20 minutes is all it takes. If you have smaller filets of salmon, you can adjust the time. This is so easy and completely reliable every time! Never dry or overcooked. So what to have with our salmon tonight?
How about couscous?? I've never cooked couscous before, so why not do it in the most public, vulnerable way possible? SURE! Like my food blog street cred isn't in serious turmoil since Monday's frozen meatball incident. Oh, HECK... I'm goin' for it! We're havin' couscous! After researching ratios of liquid to couscous, we'll be making couscous with shallots and spinach! How bad can THAT be??
First, I peel and slice 2 pretty good size shallots.
Now add shallot to a medium high heat with 2 Tablespoon of olive oil and saute for about 5 minutes until wilted and beginning to brown.
Add one cup of couscous (Israeli couscous) to the shallots and continue to saute. Mix often taking care that it doesn't stick to the pan.
Now here's where, I add 2 cups of chicken stock. Stir and cover. Simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until the couscous is cooked. I've discovered couscous is a lot like rice or orzo, so that's how I treated it.
When the couscous is cooked toss in a couple of handfuls of baby spinach (or as much as you like) mix, and allow the spinach to wilt into the couscous).
So, the salmon's been cooking, the couscous is simmering, let's finish this! I decided to add roasted asparagus to round out this meal. I roasted the asparagus exactly the same way I did in the burgers and wedges post... clean, trim, 450 oven for 10 minutes! Completely simple and delicious!
So here we go... FINISH LINE!! Remember to REST that salmon, covered, for at least 10-15 minutes when out of the oven! Cut up that lemon you zested earlier and get it ready to join the salmon on the plate. I grabbed a little fresh flat leaf parsley, because I finish almost EVERYTHING with fresh parslsey. I also added some toasted pine nuts to the couscous for some texture and crunch! (And, because when is it EVER a bad idea to add pine nuts)?
This is a super fast and easy, seriously delicious way to prepare your salmon! The couscous was a big hit (and admittedly, I'm a couscous amateur... soooo good)!!
How much do we like salmon... TOO MUCH!! We love our salmon in soft tacos, in pasta, on pizza, in scrambled eggs... seriously, we'd probably eat it on a flip flop. Love simple salmon, and this couldn't get any simpler. Before I horrify you with the size of the salmon we... uh... devoured, you should know that we're feeding boys here, and they're, furnace-burning, calorie killing athletes, so, yah, we eat A LOT OF SALMON (she said, slightly embarrassed).
So, I used to do all this labor intensive "stuff" to my salmon... chop garlic, slice lemons, layer it with fresh chopped parsley. While all well and good, the way I did it tonight is so flipping easy and delicious, I do it like this all the time! Fast and easy and super tasty! (Prepare to be horrified by what we consider a family size portion of salmon! Guilty!! We LOVE salmon!)
I know, she's a biggie... and she'll be gone soon! So, first, I line a sheet pan with foil and put a rack on. I spray the rack, because I like my salmon "skin on" and skin sticks! I'll remove the fish from the skin when done. I lay her down and brush her with a little (no more than a teaspoon of) olive oil.
Next I take, let's say, 2 whole minutes, to sprinkle salt and fresh ground pepper, garlic powder, and the zest of one lemon onto the top. BOOM! Done! Set your oven to 450 degrees and get your salmon in there!
15-20 minutes is all it takes. If you have smaller filets of salmon, you can adjust the time. This is so easy and completely reliable every time! Never dry or overcooked. So what to have with our salmon tonight?
How about couscous?? I've never cooked couscous before, so why not do it in the most public, vulnerable way possible? SURE! Like my food blog street cred isn't in serious turmoil since Monday's frozen meatball incident. Oh, HECK... I'm goin' for it! We're havin' couscous! After researching ratios of liquid to couscous, we'll be making couscous with shallots and spinach! How bad can THAT be??
First, I peel and slice 2 pretty good size shallots.
Now add shallot to a medium high heat with 2 Tablespoon of olive oil and saute for about 5 minutes until wilted and beginning to brown.
Add one cup of couscous (Israeli couscous) to the shallots and continue to saute. Mix often taking care that it doesn't stick to the pan.
Now here's where, I add 2 cups of chicken stock. Stir and cover. Simmer for about 10 to 15 minutes, or until the couscous is cooked. I've discovered couscous is a lot like rice or orzo, so that's how I treated it.
When the couscous is cooked toss in a couple of handfuls of baby spinach (or as much as you like) mix, and allow the spinach to wilt into the couscous).
So, the salmon's been cooking, the couscous is simmering, let's finish this! I decided to add roasted asparagus to round out this meal. I roasted the asparagus exactly the same way I did in the burgers and wedges post... clean, trim, 450 oven for 10 minutes! Completely simple and delicious!
So here we go... FINISH LINE!! Remember to REST that salmon, covered, for at least 10-15 minutes when out of the oven! Cut up that lemon you zested earlier and get it ready to join the salmon on the plate. I grabbed a little fresh flat leaf parsley, because I finish almost EVERYTHING with fresh parslsey. I also added some toasted pine nuts to the couscous for some texture and crunch! (And, because when is it EVER a bad idea to add pine nuts)?
This is a super fast and easy, seriously delicious way to prepare your salmon! The couscous was a big hit (and admittedly, I'm a couscous amateur... soooo good)!!
That looks and sounds delicious! AS an aside...where do you get your salmon?
ReplyDeleteHowdy Mother of Dogs! Where I live I actually have a local Big Y grocery store nearby. While not fancy (Whole Foods) they have always had seriously delicious salmon, and we get it at least once a week! And YES! This was seriously delicious!!!! Thanks!
ReplyDelete