Baked Salmon Topped with Mushroom Masala

Welcome to Plaid Eggnog, our new Blog! Thanks for visiting. :-) To reward you for stopping by, here is a recipe to get your culinary juices going on this fine winter's day:

This is a wonderful “fusion” recipe, using elements from both Asian and North American cooking. It comes from a gift given to Steve for Christmas this year. We draw categories from a hat to buy each other Christmas gifts. I (Julie) had to find something for Steve in the category of “cliché.” The cliché I chose was “red herring” – and I sent him on a scavenger hunt to the deep freeze in the basement to find said red herring. Well, it was not quite a red herring, exactly, but rather a pink salmon. Close enough, isn’t it? ;-)

The gift also included this recipe, modified from the Fall 2009 issue of Flavours magazine, along with a bottle of pinot noir (red) wine to pair with it. We just tried the recipe this week and heartily recommend it.

Serving Size:
1 person. Increase ingredients to suit your number of portions.


Ingredients:
1 salmon fillet
2 Tbsp (30 ml) canola oil
½ tsp (2 ml) whole mustard seeds
½ tsp (2 ml) cumin
½ medium-sized onion, diced
1 tsp (5 ml) garlic, diced or puréed
1 tsp (5 ml) ginger, fresh or powdered
½ tsp (2 ml) cumin
½ tsp (2 ml) coriander
Pinch of turmeric
Cayenne to taste
1 cup (250 ml) sliced mushrooms, any type
2 Tbsp (30 ml) fresh cilantro or dried chives
Salt and pepper to taste


Directions:
Preheat oven to 350 F (180 C). Heat oil in fry pan on medium-high. Add mustard and cumin to pan; wait for a crackling or popping sound, then add onions. Cook until onions caramelize. Add garlic and ginger and continue cooking for 30 seconds. Add cumin, coriander, turmeric and cayenne, then cook 1 minute. Add mushrooms and cook until they begin to brown. Stir in cilantro or chives.


Place salmon in a casserole dish and top with cooked mixture. Bake in oven until cooked, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve immediately.


Serving Hint:
Try serving the salmon with rice (we used a mixture of white and wild rice) and a vegetable side (we decided on cubed, baked sunshine squash and a spinach salad).