SALMON WITH GINGER AND CILANTRO

SALMON WITH GINGER AND CILANTRO image

Categories Fish Bake

Yield 2 people

Number Of Ingredients 8

Ingredients

Ingredients
1- Alaskan Pacific salmon fillet, approximately 1-1.5 lbs, skin still on. Suggested salmon varieties: Sockeye (red), Chinook (king) or Coho (silver).
fine sea salt
1/2 cup low sodium soy sauce (omit sea salt above if using regular, higher sodium soy sauce)
2 Tablespoons freshly grated ginger root or pre-packaged minced ginger root
1 teaspoon crushed garlic
1 cup fresh cilantro leaves, some soft stems are ok.
extra cilantro leaves for garnish

Steps:

Gently rinse salmon fillet in very cold water, about 10 seconds each side. Pat salmon dry with paper towel. Rub sea salt into salmon, flesh-side only, until most of exposed flesh is coated. In medium sized bowl, mix together soy sauce, ginger and garlic with a fork or whisk. Once well combined, briefly mix in cilantro, just enough to cause a little "bruising" of the leaves but not so much as to completely mash them to a pulp. Pour mixture into baking dish (preferably glass). If possible, try to match the size of the baking dish as closely as possible to the size of the salmon fillet. Place salmon fillet, skin side up, in the baking dish. If the fillet is a pretty uneven thickness (i.e. a difference of more than an 1 inch), I will sometimes choose to "tuck in" the thinnest parts and/or the edges, to keep those portions from being very overcooked when the thicker portion is just finished. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F(190 C) . Cover baking dish, allow salmon to marinate for approximately 10 minutes. Baked covered salmon for 20 minutes, then remove from oven and turn fillet, if possible, to skin side down. At this point the majority of the salmon should flake easily with a fork and have changed color from a bright translucent reddish-pink to a opaque, bright orange-salmon color. Check the thickest part of the salmon with a fork, aligning tines along the natural grain of the fillet and pulling gently apart. The middle of the fillet should be opaque with a small amount of translucent portions. Return salmon to oven to bake for another 5-10 minutes, depending on how well cooked you wish it to be. Remove salmon from oven, transfer to serving plate and garnish with a few remaining cilantro leaves. Excellent served with rice, vegetables or any other mildly flavored side dish (so as not to overpower).