Harissa and Brown Butter Fried Egg

Summary

Today we are cooking Salmon in a lemon brodetto. Its a low effort high wow factor plate that is sure to impress and satisfy. So let’s cook and eat great food in the RV Kitchen. 

I like to use two pans for this recipe or if you have a small thermos, or even an insulated mug, you can get away with just one saute pan. I’ve made this recipe on a single burner so you can stil do it if all you have is a camp stove

We have set the recipe up for two people so if you have company just double or triple the recipe. It scales without a problem and because it’s not complicated to bring together at the end, it’s great if you want to impress company. 

NOTES:

Fish room temp – Whether it’s raw or cooked, fish can safely sit at room temperature for up to two hours. This time reduces to one hour on hot days when the room is above 90°F. After this time the fish should be discarded or returned to the fridge and thoroughly cooked the next time it is used, to ensure the fish is cooked through.

Here is what you need, a fry pan or a saute pan, A small saucepan or a thermos, a micro plane or grater, I like the microplane for this,  and a food processor. 

From the Pantry we have salt and pepper, olive oil, garlic, 

From the grocery store, two pieces of Salmon. Try and get them to be the same size and weight. A lemon, a shallot, a cup of vegetable broth, a small bag of frozen peas, some parmesan cheese or if you want to keep it dairy free some non dairy parmesan, I like Violife but there are a few options out there these days and last, but not least, some mint. 

It is important to have your peas at room temperature so a couple of hours before you want to make this meal go ahead and pull out a cup of frozen peas and let them come up to temp. You also want to make sure your salmon is not straight out of the fridge so go ahead and pull that out half an hour before you start or if its frozen, a couple of hours. Exactly how long may vary depending on how hot it is outside but you get the idea. We want the peas and the fish just below room temp. 

The peas go first. Grate about a ¼ cup of parm into a small bowl. I like to use a microplane for this as it gives me a much finer texture. Save the very top of the mint spring for garnish. Pull the mint leaves off the stalks, you want about two tablespoons worth. Next, Drop the cup of peas, some salt and pepper and the mint leaves into the food wizzer and buzz them so they are rough chopped. With the processor running drizzle in the oil so you have a smooth puree. put the cheese into the food processor and wizz it up again and then check for seasoning. Spoon the mixture in the bowl you used for the cheese  and set to one side. 

Brodetto is Italian is broth usually combined with seafood but today we are going to use it to compliment our salmon. You are going to need to thinly slice the shallots. I like ribbons so I cut the shallot once lengthwise and then thinly slice. If you’re not super comfortable with a knife go slow and work on technique rather than speed. If you want tips on knife skills check out our video on slicing and dicing. I also finely chop some garlic and this is more a personal taste than a classic in a brodetto. You don’t need a lot but it does need to be finely chopped. Zest your Lemon, i do this straight on my cutting board to save dishes and then give the lemon a good roll to break it down before you juice it. If you like to garnish food, save two thin slices out of the middle of the lemon. I also like to just portion out my vegetable stock at this point and you can drop the veggie stock, lemon juice and zest in a bowl. 

Before we cook the brodetto I get my fish ready. When ever you’re going to put fish in a saute pan it’s important to make sure you have the fish as dry as you can. Use a piece of kitchen towel to dry both sides of the fish and then with the skin side down add salt and pepper to the top and drizzle with some olive oil.

Back to the brodetto. Get your saute pan to medium  heat and add your oil. I happen to like olive oil for this but avocado or another oil works too. You don’t want your pan to be too hot, We want to sweat the shallots and maybe put a light brown on them but not crisp them. A touch of salt will help pull out the water and after about three minutes you can add the garlic. Give the pan a shake or a stir and go for another three minutes or so, Take yout time and you want the shallots almost translucent and maybe just a touch of brown. Same for the garlic. Now add your stock, lemon juice and zest and bring it to a simmer. Taste the broth and add salt and pepper if you need to and if you want to intensify the lemon a little you can reduce the broth by simmering it for a few minutes. Transfer the broth to a small saucepan and keep on a low simmer or a small thermos and keep it warm. If you don’t have a thermos you can use an insulated cup, just make sure you put the lid on it. 

Wipe out your saute pan and put it back on the stove with a good drizzle of olive oil in it. You want your pan on medium high heat and when you drop your fish in, skin side down you should get a little sizzle. Now leave it alone. We are going to cook the salmon on the skin side for about 60 percent of the cooking time. How long the fish cooks will depend on the thickness but about 4 to 5 minutes  is a good estimate. You can watch the edge and see when the fish is about 60 percent done. Carefully turn it over and let it finish on the other side. You want there to be a little bit of pink in the middle when it’s done as it will keep cooking on the plate. While your fish finishes you can start to plate the dish. 

This dish works best in a shallow bowl or a higher sided plate. And a tip: If you can, warm your plates either in a bowl of hot water or in the sun. warm food deserves warm plates, Put half the pea puree in the middle of each plate, you want the peas to sit high rather than spread out. Then pour half the brodetto around the peas. Your fish should be about ready and you can carefully lift the fillets our of the pan. If you don’t like the skin then transfer them to your cutting board and pull off the skin before you put the fish in the center of the plate atop the peas. Grab your little mint sprigs for garnish and voila! Your Salmon in lemon brodetto with parmesan peas is ready for the table.