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Cook Salmon With the Skin On

Salmon is a fish you either love or hate. It’s not a delicate white fish but a vibrantly tasting and colorful fish. While salmon has a unique taste it should not smell fishy. The scent should be reminiscent of the ocean. Cook the salmon with the skin on.

Salmon is available as a fillet — a flat cut, as a steak 1 to several inches thick and whole. Each has the skin still on. Cooking the salmon with the skin on results in a fish that doesn’t dry out as easily. The skin crisps up and enjoyed as part of the entrée much like crispy chicken skin is enjoyed with roasted chicken.

Sautéed Salmon Fillets
Put enough cooking, olive or canola oil in the sauté pan to cover the bottom. Place on medium high heat. When the oil is shiny and shimmers add the salmon fillets skiniside up. Cook for three minutes. Turn the fillets over — skin side down and cook another three minutes. The Internal temperature of the salmon should be 145 degrees Fahrenheit. The flesh should be an opaque pink color and flake apart easily.

Baked Salmon Steaks
Tuck the flaps of the steaks in toward the center of the steak. The flaps are much thinner than the body and will overcook by the time the center is done. Fasten with toothpicks if the flaps won’t stay put. Rub the steaks with a bit of cooking oil. You won’t need much because salmon has more oil than most fish. Place the steaks in a baking pan and put in a pre-heated oven at 425 F. Bake for 10 minute for each inch of thickness. For example a 2-inch steak would cook for 20 minutes

Poached Whole Salmon
Stuff the body cavity of the whole salmon with citrus slices, herbs and spices. Use dill, lemons and peppercorns or celery leaves, parsley and lime slices. Place in a pan that is 1 or 2 inches deeper than the salmon. Cover the salmon with liquid. Use your choice of wine, lemon water, plain water or fish stock. Add additional citrus lemon slices, herbs and spices to the liquid. Bring the liquid to a boil then lower immediately to where it simmers — tiny bubbles constantly break the surface of the liquid. Remove when the fish is cooked through about 20 to 30 minutes. If the pan is too big for the stovetop, poach the fish in the oven at 425 F.

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