Nut Encrusted Salmon

Hello guys!

Thanks for stopping by. Last weekend I finally found good salmon at a great price in Cairo, I bought the whole fish! I have portioned and frozen the rest and so I share a salmon recipe today.

Nut encrusted salmon is a really elegant dish and it always looks like more work than it actually is. When I was in school, the school restaurant used to serve it. I could see the waitresses walking away from the kitchen with this dish from my work station and I always wondered how it was made. I started hanging out in that kitchen and I got the idea. I simply made herb butter and incorporated nuts into it.

The recipe for the nut encrusting yields about 10 portions, if you cut the fish in 150g strips. I like to make a batch and freeze for whenever I need it so feel free to divide it by 2 or 4 depending on how many fillets you are making. I like to have both sides of the fish seared because it is more flavourful. You can also put the seasoned fish directly on a baking tray, spoon some of the encrusting on, spread it in and bake in a hot oven till cooked and encrusting is golden.  Use whatever nuts you prefer, you can make it all almond or with peanuts. Serve hot! Check our other lunch recipes.

Ingredients

• Salmon fillet
• Salt and black pepper (to season)
• Vegetable oil (a few teaspoons)
• ½ cup chopped walnuts
• ½ cup chopped pistachios
• ½ cup chopped almonds
• 150g unsalted butter (room temperature)
• ¼ teaspoon salt
• 2 cloves garlic (minced)
• ¼ teaspoon black pepper
• zest of 1 lemon
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 2 tablespoons fleshly chopped parsley

Instructions

1. Add all the ingredients together in a bowl and mix thoroughly with a spatula or in food processor and give it a quick blitz.
2. Line a tray or large plate with grease-proof baking sheet and spread the paste out in a thin layer.
3. Cover the tray with foil and refrigerate till the paste is firm.
4. Take it out on a chopping board and slice according to the fish portions you are cooking. You can refrigerate till needed or freeze them in a zip lock bag.
5. Preheat oven to 180˚C.
6. Pat salmon fillet down with kitchen towel to ensure the surface is dry. Season on both sides with salt and pepper.
7. Heat a skillet up with a few drizzles of vegetable oil. Pan-sear the fillet starting with the bone side down.
8. Then flip the fillet to the other side, set the nut encrusting on the browned side and transfer skillet to the oven. If you do not have a skillet and your frying pan has plastic handle, use a wide spatula to lift the fish from the pan unto a baking tray and transfer to oven.
9. Bake in the oven for 10-12 minutes depending on the thickness of fillet and how cooked you like it.
10. Enjoy with a salad, quinoa goes great with salmon.