If you like your veggies
and fish, then this recipe is for you!
A
few nights ago I had taken some fresh frozen salmon out of the freezer. Unfortunately, I never got around to making it,
life got in the way! Every night since
pulling the salmon out of the freezer, I would see it in the fridge and
think…what can I do with it that is quick and easy?
For some reason, my latest recipe search has been salads. After looking at many different salad recipes, I decided to create my own version of a nicoise salad…Now I know that what I am about to
show to you is not a traditional nicoise salad, but that is what I am going to
call it, regardless.
Nicoise salads
include potatoes, green beans, tomatoes, hard boiled eggs and maybe some onion
and black olives served with some type of vinaigrette. My recipe is very simple
and only requires one pot…amazing for a week night! Most of my ingredients I already had on hand
and just pulled out of the pantry (red potatoes, garlic, olive oil) and the
fridge (carrots, green beans, eggs, salmon).
Salmon
“Nicoise” Salad with Garlic Aioli
3
small filets of salmon, skin removed
2
cups of mini carrots, sliced in half
8-10
small red potatoes, quartered
1
bag of frozen green beans
Chopped
romaine lettuce
1
clove of garlic, minced
2
egg yolks
2
tablespoons lemon juice
4-5
tablespoons olive oil
Salt
and pepper to taste
Fill a pot with water and
season with salt. Let the water come to
an early boil and add potatoes and carrots.
Cook until both are tender.
Remove the potatoes and carrots from the pot and set aside in a bowl.
Next add the frozen green
beans and cook in the same pot and water.
When beans are finished, remove them from the pot and add them to the
veggies in the bowl. Add the salmon to the pot
and cook until the salmon is a nice peachy-pink color, generally 8-10
minutes.
This method of cooking is
called poaching. It is a great way to
cook the salmon, as the salmon will absorb the flavors of the veggies from the
cooking water. Poaching will keep the
salmon moist and there is not worry about the fish being overcooked and
dry.
While the salmon poaches
in the cooking water, make the garlic aioli.
You can use a small food processor or an immersion blender. Mince the garlic and add to the food
processor. Add the yolks and lemon juice
and begin to pulse until somewhat combined.
Slowly drizzle in the olive oil while pulsating the food processor.
Keep pulsating until the mixture is smooth and blended. Make sure to add salt and pepper to taste. You can keep going until the mixture has the consistency of mayonnaise, but I prefer the consistency to a little less thick so that I can drizzle it over whatever is being served. *I would be cautious in serving young children this garlic aioli due to the fact it contains raw egg yolk*
Assembly the salad with
romaine lettuce on the bottom of plate.
Then add the carrots, beans and potatoes. Break up the salmon and add it to the top of
the salad. Drizzle the aioli over the
salad and add additional salt and pepper, if desired.
This salad was delicious
and refreshing. This will definitely be
added to our dinner rotation. I can’t
wait for the spring and summer months when I can grill the salmon covered in some sort of marinade. I will be looking into creating a recipe for that!
With Valentine’s Day approaching, this would
be a great meal to prepare and serve if you wanted a lighter meal…then you
could indulge with a nice, rich chocolate dessert!
