Recipe: Slow-Roasted Salmon with Roasted Creamy Cauliflower
Bonus recipe from Essential Emeril: Favorite Recipes and Hard-Won Wisdom From My Life in the Kitchen by Emeril Lagasse.
It was my pleasure and honor to have dined many times at Girardet, Chef Frédy Girardet’s Michelin three star–rated restaurant in Crissier, Switzerland. It was there that I had the original version of this dish. I had never experienced fish cooked using this low and slow method, and it was truly a revelation, as was pairing the salmon with a cauliflower puree. This is my tribute to Frédy-—he retired almost twenty years ago, but to me he is still the Pope of Fine Cooking.
2 lemons
3⁄4 ounce sprigs fresh thyme (8 to 10 sprigs)
4 (6-ounce) skin-on wild salmon fillets
(see Essentials, at right), about 1 inch thick
1⁄4 cup olive oil
1⁄2 teaspoon coarse sea salt
1⁄2 teaspoon freshly ground white pepper
Roasted Creamy Cauliflower (recipe follows)
- 1. Preheat the oven to 250°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Cut one lemon into 1⁄8-inch-thick slices, and juice the second lemon. Arrange the slices on the prepared baking sheet and place the thyme sprigs on top. Add the salmon fillets, skin side down. Drizzle the lemon juice and oil over the salmon, then sprinkle with the salt and pepper. Place in the oven on the center rack and roast until the salmon is cooked almost all through at the thickest point, about 25 minutes. To check for doneness, make an incision with a sharp knife at the thickest point of a fillet and pull it apart to check for opaqueness; don’t cook it beyond medium-rare.
- 2. To serve, spoon 2 to 3 tablespoons of the cauliflower onto each plate, then gently place a fillet on top. Garnish with the lemon slices and the thyme sprigs, or just the leaves. Serve immediately.
Yield: 4 servings
roasted creamy cauliflower
At Girardet, the salmon was served with a cauliflower puree. Here, I added chopped roasted cauliflower for a delicious textural counterpoint to the salmon.
1 small head cauliflower (about 11⁄2 pounds)
1 tablespoon olive oil
Fine sea salt and ground white pepper
2 cups half-and-half
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon roasted garlic
- 1. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Cut the cauliflower into small florets (you’ll end up with about 5 cups). In a medium bowl, toss half of the cauliflower with the oil, 1⁄2 teaspoon salt, and 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper until coated. Arrange in a single layer on a baking sheet and roast, stirring occasionally, until golden brown and tender, about 30 minutes.
- 2. Place the remaining florets in a medium saucepan with the half-and-half, butter, and 1⁄2 teaspoon salt and 1⁄4 teaspoon pepper. Simmer over medium heat until the cauliflower is very tender, about 20 minutes. Drain, reserving about 1 cup of the cooking liquid.
- 3. Place the simmered cauliflower and garlic in a blender. Process into a very smooth puree, adding just enough of the reserved cooking liquid. Transfer to a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan. Chop the roasted cauliflower and fold it into the puree. Adjust the seasonings and keep warm over low heat until ready to use, or store in an airtight container in the refrigerator for up to 4 days. Reheat in a saucepan over low heat.
Yield: 21⁄2 cups; 4 servings
Note: Don’t think of using anything but wild salmon for this. Wild salmon is much leaner than farm-raised, and this low and slow method traps the fish’s natural oils, yielding a soft, silky, buttery texture—it practically melts in your mouth.
Excerpted from Essential Emeril: Favorite Recipes and Hard-Won Wisdom From My Life in the Kitchen by Emeril Lagasse. Copyright © 2015 Emeril Lagasse dba MSLO Acquisition sub, LLC. Reprinted with permission from Oxmoor House, an imprint of Time Inc. Books. All rights reserved.