Welcome to our blog series on cooking with wine in which we continue our culinary adventure with poached salmon. Here’s a recipe that looks difficult but it’s so easy. Besides looking like a 5-star meal, it’s also delightfully delicious!
Before we begin, there’s one thing that we find really handy and that’s to know a few things up front. First, how long will it take to prep, cook, set aside, refrigerate, etc. before it’s ready to eat? Second, how many people will it serve? Lastly, the grocery list.
Nice to know details
As a general rule, set aside the following times:
- 15 minutes preparation
- 5-10 minutes cooking
- Serves 4 people
Grocery List
- 2 cups of fresh arugula
- 1 English cucumber
- 12 Cherry tomatoes
- 1 cup of plain Greek yogurt
- Several sprigs of fresh dill
- 1 clove of garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
- 2-3 tablespoons of milk
- 1 tablespoon of Miracle Whip
- 2 bottles of Sauvignon Blanc, chilled
- 1 Shallot
- Several sprigs of parsley
- 1 Salmon filet (approximately 1.5 pounds)
- Sea salt
- 16 sprigs of watercress
- Peppercorns
- 1 lemon
Prepare the salad first
The salad is super easy to make and is also an impressive accompaniment on the plate.
- Distribute 2 cups of fresh arugula evenly into 4 single sized serving bowls on one side
- Add 2 cherry tomatoes to each serving bowl on or near the arugula
- Slice 4 cherry tomatoes into thin slices and set aside
- Cut the English cucumber into 16 1/4-inch slices, cut them in half and distribute evenly in each serving bowl on top of the arugula
Preparing the sauce
This sauce is easy to make and can also work as the salad dressing.
- Place 1 cup of plain Greek yogurt in a small bowl
- Mince 1 clove of garlic and add it to the bowl
- Finely chop enough fresh dill to fill 1 tablespoon and add it to the bowl
- Add 1/2 teaspoon of Dijon mustard, 2-3 tablespoons of milk, 1 tablespoon of Miracle Whip and sea salt and fresh ground pepper to taste
- Stir to combine ingredients thoroughly
- Distribute evenly into the empty space in each serving bowl next to the salad
Poaching the salmon
Just to be safe, it’s a good idea to have an extra bottle of the Sauvignon Blanc you’re using in the recipe chilling. You might want to have a few sips during the cooking stage. Also, you’ll need a bottle to be served with dinner!
- Place 1/2 cup of Sauvignon Blanc and 1/2 cup of water in a poacher
- Finely slice 1 shallot and add it to the poaching liquid
- Add remaining sprigs of fresh dill and all the parsley to the poaching liquid
- Bring the poaching liquid to a simmer over medium heat
- Cut the salmon filet into 4 equal pieces
- Sprinkle the salmon flesh with sea salt and place each piece skin side down in the poaching liquid
- Cover the poacher or frying pan and simmer for 5-10 minutes
Serving
- Place salmon skin side down in each serving bowl
- Distribute sliced cherry tomatoes beside the salmon in the dill cream sauce
- Garnish each piece of salmon with 4 sprigs of watercress and serve
- Optional: Serve with a slice of lemon on top of each piece of salmon or a wedge on the side
Pairing
We recommend serving this meal with a bottle of your very own DIY craft white wine. It’s always best to serve the same wine used during cooking. This always helps to enhance both the flavours in the dish and also the wine.
Tips
- For the sauce, you can use dried or frozen dill
- For poaching, the dill and parsley don’t need to be chopped before putting them into the poaching liquid
- This recipe also works in a frying pan that has a lid
- If you’re using a poacher, you can use the rack but more flavours will infuse into the salmon if you don’t
We hope you enjoy this Cooking With Wine – Poached Salmon recipe.
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