Salt Crusted Salmon Recipes

SALT AND PEPPER SALMON

Steps:

• Run your finger up and down the center of the salmon feeling for any pin bones. Remove any that you find with a needle-nosed pliers or tweezers. With a sharp knife cutting across the width of the salmon, divide it into 4 equal portions. Lightly salt the salmon and let sit a couple minutes; this will help you get crispy skin.
• Heat a 2-count, about 2 tablespoons, of olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat until the oil is almost smoking. Season the salmon with pepper, and rub about 1 1/2 tablespoons butter on the skin side of each fillet. Add the salmon to the pan, skin-side down. To get super crispy skin, cook the salmon almost to completion, about 6 minutes.
• Flip the salmon and cook until flesh side is nicely seared, 1 to 2 minutes.
• Transfer the salmon to a platter and serve with the Smashed Potatoes.
• Put the potatoes into a large pot, cover them with cold water, and add a large pinch of salt. If they're large, cut them in half. Bring to a boil and simmer until the potatoes are fork tender, 20 to 30 minutes. Drain. Stick a fork into the potatoes, 1 at a time, lift them out of the colander and peel with a paring knife. Toss the potatoes into a bowl and roughly crush them. Drizzle with olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
• Heat 2 tablespoons olive oil with the butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat until the butter melts. Add the pearl onions, sugar, and lemon juice and cook, stirring frequently, until the onions are browned, 5 to 6 minutes. Add the lemon slices, peas, and lemon zest and continue cooking until the peas are hot. Season with salt and pepper. Dump the vegetables over the potatoes in the bowl, drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil add the parsley and dill and taste for salt and pepper. Scatter the watercress over the top, fold it in just until it wilts and call it a day.

PANKO-CRUSTED SALMON

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
• In a small bowl, mix together the panko, parsley, lemon zest, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper. Drizzle with the olive oil and stir until the crumbs are evenly coated. Set aside.
• Place the salmon fillets, skin side down, on a board. Generously brush the top of the fillets with mustard and then sprinkle generously with salt and pepper. Press the panko mixture thickly on top of the mustard on each salmon fillet. The mustard will help the panko adhere.
• Heat the vegetable oil over medium-high heat in a 12-inch cast-iron skillet or large heavy, ovenproof pan. When the oil is very hot, add the salmon fillets, skin side down, and sear for 3 to 4 minutes, without turning, to brown the skin.
• Transfer the pan to the hot oven for 5 to 7 minutes until the salmon is almost cooked and the panko is browned. Remove from the oven, cover with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 5 to 10 minutes. Serve the salmon hot or at room temperature with lemon wedges.

WHISKEY-GLAZED SALMON WITH SALT-CRUSTED POTATOES

Steps:

• Make the potatoes: The potatoes should all be the same small size, about 1 inch in diameter, so cut any larger ones in halves or quarters. Place in a large saucepan with 4 cups water and add the salt. Bring to boil over high heat, then continue boiling until a paring knife slides through a potato easily, about 15 minutes.
• About 5 minutes before the potatoes are tender, start the salmon: Combine the sugar, whiskey and Worcestershire sauce in a large skillet, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat, stirring to dissolve the sugar. Season the salmon with salt and pepper, then add to the skillet skin side down (or the flat side if the fillets are skinless). Reduce the heat to medium-low and simmer until the salmon becomes opaque about halfway up the sides, about 5 minutes.
• Meanwhile, carefully tip the saucepan into the sink to pour out all but about 1/4 cup cooking water, keeping the potatoes in the pan. Return the saucepan to the stove with the potatoes and a thin layer of cooking water at the bottom, and set over high heat. Cook, shaking the pan often, until the liquid evaporates and the potatoes are crusted in a fine film of salt, about 5 minutes. The pan should be extremely dry and coated in salt and the potatoes will sound crackly when shaken.
• Flip the salmon and continue cooking until just opaque from top to bottom and a paring knife slides through with almost no resistance, about 5 minutes longer. If you started with a 1-inch-thick fillet, this will be medium-rare. The timing will vary depending on the thickness of your fish and your preferred doneness. If you'd like, use tongs to peel off and discard the skin if there is any. The glaze should have thickened and be syrupy.
• Divide the potatoes and salmon among serving plates and drizzle any glaze from the pan over the fish.

CRUSTED SALMON

Steps:

• Place salmon fillets in a shallow dish; add milk. Turn to coat. Let stand for 10 minutes; drain., Meanwhile, in a shallow bowl, combine the pecans, flour, brown sugar, seasoned salt and pepper. Coat fillets with pecan mixture, gently pressing into the fish., In a large cast-iron or other ovenproof skillet, brown salmon over medium-high heat in oil. Bake at 400° until fish just begins to flake easily with fork, 8-10 minutes.

SALT-CRUSTED SALMON WITH COLLARD GREEN SALSA VERDE

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
• Mix the salt and egg whites in a medium bowl with your hands and incorporate until the mixture feels like wet sand.
• Spread 1 1/2 cups of the salt mixture into a thin layer, in the shape of the salmon, on a baking sheet. (You may need to spread the mixture diagonally on the baking sheet.)
• Arrange the lemongrass, ginger, chile, and cilantro over the bed of salt. Place the fish, skin side up, on the bed of salt and aromatics and pack the remaining salt mixture over and around the fish, molding it to the shape of the fillet, sealing the fish and aromatics inside.
• Place the baking sheet in the oven and bake for 25 to 30 minutes. The salt crust should have a warm golden color almost like sand and be rock hard. Remove from the oven and let rest for 10 minutes.
• Present the fish at the table within its salt crust, then, using a wooden spoon, strike the crust to crack it. Carefully lift pieces of the salt crust from the fish in large chunks. Peel back the skin, exposing the juicy, perfectly cooked fish. Divide the fish among plates. Discard the salt and aromatics.
• Serve with the salsa verde.
• In a food processor, pulse the collard greens, Brazil nuts, garlic, parsley and olive oil until thoroughly combined. You can use a flexible rubber spatula to scrape down the ingredients in the food processor to make sure everything mixes evenly.
• Transfer the mixture to a bowl, add the lemon zest and salt to taste (I use about 1 1/2 teaspoons). Stir in the vinegar just before serving.
• Adapted and excerpted from "Between Harlem and Heaven: Afro-Asian-American Cooking for Big Nights, Weeknights, and Every Day" by JJ Johnson and Alexander Smalls with Veronica Chambers. Copyright © 2018 by JJ Johnson and Alexander Smalls with Veronica Chambers. Reprinted with permission from Flatiron Books. All rights reserved. Photography by Beatriz da Costa.