Baked Salmon

Name: Baked Salmon
Prep time: 10 min
Cook time: 1 h 10 min
Total time: 1 h 20 min
Yield: 4 servings
Ingredients: 1 salmon fillet (choose a thick fillet; mine was about 4 cm thick; a 500 g fillet is enough for 2 people); a little olive oil; salt, pepper, chili

October 15, 2014

Simple Recipes Fish and Seafood Meat Dishes Oven Recipes Gluten-Free Recipes

A technique for achieving soft and succulent baked salmon.

I don't know if you've ever tasted it this way, but for me the best salmon is raw. So for baked salmon, I looked for a recipe that preserves everything good about raw salmon (soft and creamy texture, color, taste of the sea) while still being cooked. When I baked salmon at higher temperatures, the color became pale pink and the taste was completely different from raw salmon. It was okay, but I wasn't thrilled with the result. That's why salmon wasn't among my favorite fish when it came to baking.

The solution I found was using a very low temperature, which means a longer baking time. But it's worth the wait. The baked salmon comes out absolutely perfect.

The recipe calls for trimming the salmon to achieve a uniform thickness of the fillets. I didn't used to do this, even though those edges came out dry, because I didn't want to waste, but since I discovered the wonderful salmon patties, this is no longer a problem. Those trimmings are ideal for making a few patties.

Baked salmon can be served with steamed vegetables (especially broccoli), with dill sauce and peas, or with a refreshing salad.

Ingredients

1 salmon fillet (choose a thick fillet; mine was about 4 cm thick; a 500 g fillet is enough for 2 people)
a little olive oil
salt, pepper, chili

How to prepare baked salmon

Take the fillet out of the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking to allow it to come to room temperature. Run your fingers over the fillet and if you feel any bones, use tweezers to remove them.
Trim the thin edges of the fillet so that you have as uniform a thickness as possible (see photos 1-2). The trimmings can be used for another recipe.
Then cut the fillet crosswise into pieces as wide as you like (I cut them 4-5 cm wide). Drizzle with a little olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt, ground black pepper, and chili to taste.
Place the fillets in a non-stick pan (drizzled with a little olive oil) or a pan lined with parchment paper. Place the thicker fillets in the back row and the thinner ones in front.
Bake at 90°C for 35 minutes (for fillets 3.5-4 cm thick). Adjust the time slightly if your fillets are thinner or thicker.
Remove the pieces from the pan and scrape off the white coagulated protein at the base with a knife, which looks like egg white (see photo 5).
If desired, carefully peel the skin off the fillets and place it back in the pan. Put the pan under the broiler for about 5 minutes, until the skin is crispy and lightly browned.
Serve immediately, with the fillets topped with pieces of crispy skin. Add steamed vegetables and lemon or a lemon sauce on the side.