I like Salmon. Who knew?

There is a story here. Because I love Sardines on crackers, and I love tuna salad sandwiches, and Tuna Noodle Casserole. What I don't love is this thing my mom used to make, Salmonloaf. Now, this should have been a good thing. The ingredients, as I remember them, are pretty innocuous. Canned salmon, crushed crackers, egg, salt and pepper, I'm sure there were other things. But somehow this stuff came out of the oven and was so dry that it sucked the moisture from your mouth leaving it hard to swallow. And it tasted funny. Not funny haha, funny "I'm not eating that". I remember we used to douse it with ketchup in an attempt to make it liquid enough to swallow.

So. I'm pretty sure that my salmon dislike is more psychosomatic (side note here, in case you are wondering, the definition of psychosomatic is:

• adj. Of or relating to a disorder having physical symptoms but originating from mental or emotional causes.
• adj. Relating to or concerned with the influence of the mind on the body, and the body on the mind, especially with respect to disease: psychosomatic medicine

From Wordnik via The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition)

than actual, because when I analyzed it, tuna and sardines both taste very like salmon. So...a quest was born. There was no reason for me to dislike salmon, and it is full of good stuff your body needs, therefore...

Have I mentioned that I am a teensy bit stubborn?

This is the recipe I made last night. I have had salmon I liked before, but this one, the salsa just does something to the flavor that is magical.

Charcoal grilled salmon with salsa

2 jalapeño chilis, halved and seeded
1 red onion, sliced
4 tomatoes, chopped
3 tablespoons cilantro
salt and pepper to taste
1 avocado, peeled and diced
1 lime (or some lime juice, about three tablespoons)
enough salmon fillets for everyone to get some
cedar planks, enough to fit all the salmon, soaked for at least 30 minutes

Load grill with charcoal, enough to cover the bottom of the grill, light it up. Once the coals are ready, using a grill pan cook the onion and jalapeños until softened. Remove from grill and bring inside to be chopped up. Chop the onion and peppers into pieces and stir together with the tomatoes, avocado, cilantro, lime juice, and salt and pepper to taste. Set aside and put the plank on the cooking grate. Sprinkle the salmon fillet(s) with salt and pepper. Once the bottom side of the plank is hot, turn it over and put the fillet on the plank. Close the grill hood and wait about 8 minutes. Cut into one of the fillets to see if it is cooked through--the fish should look opaque and with a matte surface. I served this with the thick french bread from Safeway and the salsa was divine. The salmon also tasted good on its own. There may be salsa left over if you only use one fillet. I got some tortilla chips at the grocery today...

The other recipe I tried since the last entry to this blog was meh. It was very similar to the Chicken with potatoes and asparagus, but had an additional couple of ingredients. And I thought the potato and asparagus portion of the recipe would make a very good side dish--asparagus and parmesan cheese together are wonderful.

So. Garlic potatoes with asparagus and parmesan cheese.

4 or 5 potatoes, cut into bite size cubes
about a pound of asparagus, cut into short lengths
1/4 cup of parmesan cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
5 garlic cloves, chopped
olive oil

Preheat oven to 425 F. Put the cubed potato and garlic into a large ziplock bag, add a couple tablespoons of olive oil and a half teaspoon of salt. Dump into a large baking pan and put into the oven for about twenty minutes. Remove pan from oven and spread the asparagus over the potatoes. Bake another 15 minutes, remove from the oven. Stir the parmesan and parsley together, sprinkle over the top of the potatoes and asparagus. Bake another 5 to 10 minutes, until the cheese gets melted. I expect this would be good with pretty much any meat. And I want to try it with cauliflower instead of potatoes.

THE Magpie