Got it, Cook it: Lemon Rosemary Salmon

Thursday, September 15, 2011

Lemon Rosemary Salmon

Mere words do not do justice to the flavors in this dish.
Salmon, lemon and rosemary. So easy, so unexpectedly delicious.
We didn't expect to be impressed.
We were.
I could eat this every week, not even kidding.

Such a simple idea for salmon, not sure why this isn't more common. We did push the rosemary off the top before eating it, the flavor had infused the salmon, so there was no need to try to eat those tough little pieces of rosemary.

I happen to have some huge rosemary bushes in my garden, so I always have this ingredient on hand. If you have a hot, dry area in your garden with terrible soil, plant your rosemary plant there. Truly, rosemary loves it.

Served with my Grilled Greek Potato Salad, it was the perfect end of Summer meal the last before the weather radically decided to become Fall. Don't let the change of seasons stop you, this dish is easy to do in the oven too. You could prep this in advance, and have it ready for a dinner party or even a weeknight dinner. This is special enough for guests and super good for you too.

Serves 2
Ingredients:
2 Salmon fillets
4 lemon slices, 2 each
1-2 tsp lemon zest
2-3 Tbsp fresh rosemary leaves
2-3 Tbsp olive oil
coarse salt, like Sel Gris or other sea salt

I made a double thickness foil pan with crimped sides for my salmon fillets. I put a little olive oil underneath, and on top of the salmon.

Grate some lemon zest of your lemon add to the top of the salmon. Sprinkle the tops with rosemary leaves, and add generous amounts of coarse salt and fresh pepper. Cut a couple slices from your lemon (same one that you zested) to the salmon. Squeeze the leftover ends of the lemons on and around the salmon.

Grill over medium hot coals, or gas, until the salmon just starts to let off the white juice, about 5-10 minutes depending on the heat of your grill and the thickness of your salmon. I like my salmon on the slightly underdone side.

Remove and serve.

NOTE: You could make foil, or parchment, packets and bake in the oven, or do on the grill, and it might even make a more intense flavor trapped into your packets, but I didn't do that because I like to be able to "see" what the salmon is doing, and it's hot, and tricky, to do that with packets. I'd bake them at 400 F for about 10 minutes and let them sit for 2-3 minutes before opening.