Wine Poached Salmon with Arugula Salad from Cindy

 

UPDATED 2020

I asked our friend Cindy to share with us her "go to" recipe for salmon with arugula salad, so she invited Tom and me over for a weekday meal to show us how she does it.

It is so fast and easy, and uses just a few ingredients:  the salmon, any wine, orange juice, a shallot, arugula, olive oil, salt and pepper.

And the best part is that it can be made using frozen salmon, if you don't have time to defrost!

Cindy used red wine for our meal, but you can also use white wine.

---Barbara

Just orange juice and wine for poaching the fish

Wine Poached Salmon with Arugula Salad
(from Cindy)

Serves 2-4

For the fish:
1  6-ounce salmon fillet (skinless) per person
1/2 cup wine (white or red, anything you have)
1/3 cup orange juice
lots of salt and pepper

For the salad:
1 bag of pre-washed greens, arugula or spinach
1 T. diced shallot
3 to 1 ratio olive oil to orange juice
    - 9 T. extra virgin olive oil
    - 3 T. orange juice
salt and pepper

Start the salad, by dicing the shallot and place it in the bottom of a salad bowl.

Measure out the olive oil, then add the orange juice in a 3 to 1 ratio and use a whisk or a fork and stir vigorously to emulsify the dressing.

(Which means that you are combining the oil and juice.)  Add salt and pepper and mix.

Pre-heat a non-stick pan with a tight-fitting cover to medium-high, then heavily salt the bottom of the pan.

Cut open the frozen salmon fillet

and add it directly to the pan, and brown it, then flip it over to brown the other side.

Add more salt an

d lots of pepper.

Add 1/2 cup wine to the pan.  Then, 1/3 cup of orange juice.

Cover and reduce the heat to low to slowly cook the fish.  If the fish is defrosted, it will cook much faster.  Keep the sauce at a simmer.

After a minute or two, turn the fish over.

Meanwhile, add the dressing to the bottom of the bowl, then add the arugula a little at a time and toss it all together.

The greens will start to wilt a little.  Be sure all of the greens are evenly coated.

Go back to the fish, and continue to poach until the fish is cooked.  It will be tender but still firm.

Remove the fish from the pan, and set aside.  You will use the remaining juices to create a sauce.

Turn the heat back up, and reduce the liquid until it becomes syrupy.  It will only take a minute or two.

As needed, removed it from the heat to check the consistency, i.e., be careful not to burn it, but reduce it to a very thick syrupy sauce.

Drizzle the reduced sauce over the fish.

Divide the salad evenly, and place a piece of fish on top.

Serve with hot 7 grain bread, if desired.

And extra salt and pepper.

Delicious!

B