clove of garlic – Sublime Palate

Crispy Salmon with Garlic Coriander Sauce

There are 2 kinds of people in this world: Those that love Salmon. And those that don’t. That’s probably true of most things, but I couldn’t come up with a better opening line. So, there you go!

I happen to be the former and so is little V. I hereby declare my eternal love for Salmon. R, on the other hand, doesn’t quite get what the fuss is all about! But we [V and I] find a way to work around it. We just make him eat it. 😉 And he does.

We especially love the crisp skin of the Salmon. The skin absorbs a bit more salt than the rest of the fish and that makes it even more desirable. When there’s Salmon on the dinner table, all else doesn’t quite matter, does it? 🙂

I have made this countless number of times for V and it’s quick and easy to make. If you are a Salmon lover like me, I won’t need to sell the recipe to you because you will probably love it anyway 🙂

In it’s simplest form, all you need is some crushed garlic, salt, pepper and olive oil marinade with the salmon. Pan fry (with minimal oil) and you are done. In this version, I added a slight variant – fresh coriander leaves or cilantro. If you have a particular dislike for coriander, feel free to omit the coriander leaves.

We usually have this Crispy Salmon for dinner on a weeknight when I don’t want to spend too much time cooking. This goes well with a simple vegetable pasta or just plain rice and stir fried vegetables.

To print the recipe, click here.

Crispy Salmon with garlic coriander sauce

Serves: 2
Total time taken: Under 30 minutes
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 7-8 minutes

Ingredients:
Salmon fillet with skin on (about 250 gms)
Garlic cloves: 1-2 (adjust to taste)
Fresh coriander leaves – a bunch. Discard the roots.
Black pepper powder: a tiny pinch
Juice of ¼ of a lemon
Zest of ½ a lemon
Olive oil: 1 tbsp
Sea salt: to taste

How I did it:

1. Squeeze the lemon juice and zest on the salmon fillet. Sprinkle sea salt to taste. Put a little less than required as we will also season the sauce.

2. Prepare a quick blend of the garlic, coriander leaves including stalk but not the roots, a tsp of olive oil and sea salt.

3. Rub the prepared coriander, garlic sauce (the marinade) on the salmon. Sprinkle a dash of black pepper powder. Let the Salmon marinate for about 15 minutes.

4. Heat a pan. Add the remaining olive oil (2 tsp). Make sure the the oil is hot before placing the salmon fillet in it. This step is important to prevent the fish from breaking and disintegrating.

5. Place the salmon fillet, skin down first. Reduce flame to lowest. Cover and let it cook for 5 minutes.

Heat a pan. Add olive oil and place the marinated Salmon, skin down. Cover & let it cook for 5 minutes.

6. After 5 minutes, turn the salmon for another minute. Do not cook on this side for long as the salmon will start to overcook.

Turn the Salmon over and cook for another minute.

7. Serve w lemon wedges.

It was a hot afternoon. We just got home from a long, unwanted walk in the heat. Exhausted. Dehydrated. I was definitely not in the mood for any complicated, time consuming cooking. Yes, there are many such days. I made a Vegetable Pulao. I needed to make something that would go with it.

On my mind was something cool, refreshing and lightly spiced up. My usual go-to would have been a Raita. For those who are not familiar with Indian food, Raita is a yogurt based side dish usually mixed with cucumbers, tomatoes, onions or any other vegetable individually or in various combinations. They are spiced up with something as basic as salt, black salt, roasted cumin powder and chilli powder.

I started out to make a Raita. But, it was one of those days where my heart guides and my hands listen.

I peeled the cucumbers. Removed the seeds. I started chopping them but I knew I was looking for something else. Not Raita again!

I looked up the fridge for some inspiration. I gazed at the vegetables almost endlessly. I often do that when I need to make something I haven’t had before. And there it was. The magic of mint was about to happen. Soon, I had a bunch of fresh mint leaves plucked, stalks removed, washed and ready to be used.

I wanted to add some spices. But I couldn’t add chillies yet or little V couldn’t have it. So, it had to be something else. It had to be Garlic. I LOVE Garlic.

There it was, a beautiful, refreshing drink with yogurt, cucumber, mint and a touch of garlic. Refreshing. Chilled. Perfect to beat the heat.

Click here for the printed recipe.

This is how I did it:

Peel cucumber. Remove seeds from the core. Roughly chop it.

Pluck leaves of mint. Smash a clove of garlic. Use up to ½ the clove or adjust as per your taste. Remember, a touch of raw garlic goes a long way.

In a blender, add the cucumber, mint, garlic, 3-4 cubes of ice cubes and a spoon full of yogurt. Blend until smooth.

Now take this blended mix in a bowl. Add the remaining yogurt, roasted cumin powder, black salt and a bit of regular salt to taste. Using a whisk until you get a smooth mixture.
Taste and add milk (up to half a cup).

Give it a good whisk again and chill for half an hour or more before serving.
Garnish with a pinch of cumin powder and a couple of mint leaves.

Tag: clove of garlic

Crispy Salmon with Garlic Coriander sauce

Chilled Cucumber, Mint and Yogurt drink