10 December, 2015

Cast Iron Seared & Broiled Salmon With A Fruit Herb Salsa

Comments : 10 Posted in : Fish, Main Dish on December 10, 2015 by : Cook Plate Fork Tags: Arugula, broiled salmon, dinner, fish dinner, seared salmon, seared salmon steaks

The best pan for salmon is one with a heavy bottom that you can heat to a high temperature and that conducts heat evenly.

Cast iron skillets once heated (about 5-10 minutes) keep a steady cooking temperature and distributes heat evenly, without cold spots.

Cast iron is great for searing a ribeye steak, cooking burgers and searing fish, a task that requires constant and even heat.

Cast iron cookware is also a good choice for baking. Do a on line search for “cast iron baking recipes,” and you will get back some 170 million results for things like cornbread, bread rolls, pizza, pie, cookies, and cake, among others.

The draw back of cast iron skillets, is the skillet is porous and catches the smell of whatever it is that you cook with it.

Therefore, if using a cast iron skillet to sear your salmon steak, use a ceramic coated cast iron.

Ceramic Coated Cast Iron Skillet

Also, a cast iron skillet is best to use with this recipe as the fish is not only seared, but also broiled.

Fun Kitchen Facts

The secret to the handle of a cast iron skillet not heating up too much? There’s a small hole at the end that allows it to radiate heat instead of accumulating it.

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Why Sear Fish

Pan searing helps lock in the moisture and prevents the meat from drying out.

The Science of Cooking explains the purpose of searing meat, noting the process is called the “Maillard Reaction,” and is not to be confused with “Caramelization.”

Read More Here About Caramelizing Onions in a Cast Iron Skillet

When searing meat, hundreds of different flavor compounds are created. When heated, these compounds break down to form new flavors.

Each type of meat being seared has a very distinctive set of flavor compounds that are formed during the Maillard reaction.

Cast Iron Seared & Broiled Salmon With Fruit And Herb Salsa

First prepare the salsa and refrigerate for later.

1 cup diced peaches, fresh or frozen

3/4 cup diced mango, fresh or frozen

2 mini red sweet peppers, seeded and diced

1/4 cup diced red onion

5 leaves of fresh mint, chopped

1 spring of thyme, leaves only, discard steams

1/4 cup Italian parsley

Juice of 1/2 lime

1/2 teaspoon Himalayan salt

Prepare and mix together all ingredients in a medium bowl. Top and refrigerate until ready to use.

Now prepare your salmon steaks. You will need the following for two servings.

2 salmon steaks, skin on

3 to 4 tablespoons avocado oil, smoke point to 500 degrees

3-4 cups Arugula

Heat oven on broil. Next, lightly drizzle avocado oil (heat safe to 500 degrees) into a cast iron oven-safe skillet over medium-high heat. Add salmon steaks to heated skillet and sear on each side for 2 minutes.