When salmon is on sale for $6.99/lb, I'll usually splurge on a 3-pounder. Most recently, I just bought a pound and a half. For dinner, I sauteed quartered brussels sprouts in a little butter in a small pot and then placed a piece of salmon (skin on) on top of the sprouts to steam. On top of the salmon I poured 2 teaspoons of teriyaki sauce, some ginger powder, and a sliced scallion. Using just the sauce and liquid from the butter & sprouts, I covered the pot, steamed everything on low for a few minutes and then turned off the heat. I let the fish sit for another few minutes until I was ready to eat.
The salmon was buttery, flaky and still slightly dark pink inside, and the sprouts were tender. Delicious!
One time I was wandering the aisles in a kosher supermarket (different than the one I regularly go to) and I discovered some packaged salmon heads.
Growing up, we never had the heads of the animals at our meals until one year my mother bought some for Rosh Hashanah. It was a contest to see who in the family would eat an eyeball, or at least keep it in their mouth the longest. A little squeamish about that kind of thing, I watched my siblings and father pop one in their mouths to see how it tasted. Now, I know that it's an acquired taste for some, and a fun, squishable snack for others, but I think I made the right choice to opt out of that unique challenge.
I chose a salmon head from the display and brought it home to experiment. I watch the Travel Channel regularly and one time Andrew Zimmern ate at a restaurant in Japan where the specialty is a whole roasted tuna head. Taking that concept and scaling it WAY down for my little salmon head, I coated a pan with cooking spray and potatoes and placed the head on top. I drizzled some olive oil, salt and pepper on the head and placed it in the oven for about 30 minutes at 375. I kept an eye on the eyes, watching them turn from clear to opaque, and poking the nose to check if it was soft. (Photo below)
When I was finally able to eat it, I gently opened it up, peeling the skin away from the flesh. I got at the cheeks and teased them away from the bone: those were what I wanted to eat first. Fabled as the most delicious part of the entire fish, the cheeks let off some steam, two tantalizing bites on my plate. When I ate one, it was nearly orgasmic - it was the best bite of fish I had ever eaten. And there was another one! I savored each chew, wondering how I had never experienced something like this before. The texture was a mix between salmon and chicken, and it didn't flake quite the same way as the rest of the fish. Since the head is so fatty, every morsel that came out of this pan was juicy and delicious.
Furthermore, reheating the potatoes just made them even more flavorful because they had soaked up the salmon fat and baking juices so they tasted like salmon-fat fries (highly recommended).
Yum!
Here are some of my other favorite salmon combinations:
with broccoli, salt and pepper
with mango salsa and mushroom risotto at Blue Light Grill in Charlottesville, VA
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