Sesame Salmon with Sriracha Mayo

Sesame Salmon with Sriracha Mayo

Salmon is a healthy and delicious way to get dinner on the table quickly. From start to finish this dish took me 30 minutes. I served it with rice that I cooked at the same time and a side salad. If you need more of a veggie, green beans or snow peas sautéed in a veggie oil with minced garlic would be my recommendation.

 Now for tweaking this dish, you can substitute white wine vinegar (or even apple cider vinegar) for the rice wine vinegar. You may not have sesame oil in your pantry, but it is worth buying some. I use it all the time. I like to sauté green beans and garlic in a little sesame oil. I use it in stir fries, I toss hot noodles in a little as a side dish, I toss a tiny bit with seeded cucumbers and onions for a salad. Experiment with it but use it sparingly. The flavor is strong. I try to never use ingredients that will only work for one dish, so trust me. Finally, you can use more sriracha if you like spicy. You can also leave the mayo off if you are feeding Littles (or even adults) who aren’t into heat. You can use just white (or just black) sesame seeds. I used both because I had both and I thought it looked better.

Speaking of looks, sometimes salmon will ooze gray stuff. It is actually fat, and it is where all the healthy omega-3 fatty acids are. So, I recommend just leaving it alone. However, if you are going for aesthetics, use the butter knife to gently scrape it off during step number 3. .*****

Read the entire recipe before starting.

Servings: 2-4
Time:   Prep: 5-10 minutes; Cook: 8-14 minutes Dinner in 20 minutes.
Hardware:  measuring spoons, paper towels, a small sauce pot, a whisk, a small bowl, a small plate, rubber spatula, a quart plastic bag, scissors, a large, heavy bottomed skillet that can be used on the stove top & in the oven (I prefer cast iron), a large spatula for removing the fish intact (or a fish spatula if you have one), a thermometer, a butter knife, a fork

Ingredients

• 2- 6-ounce salmon fillets (1 to -1¼ inch thick)
• 3 tablespoons of sesame oil for sauce + enough to cover the bottom of the skillet
• 1 tablespoon soy sauce
• 2 tablespoons brown sugar
• 1 teaspoon rice wine vinegar
• ½ teaspoon grated fresh ginger
• 3 tablespoons sesame seeds
• ¼ cup mayonnaise
• 1 teaspoon (or more) sriracha sauce
• Salt and pepper
• White rice for serving

1. Cut the fish into serving sizes. Rinse in clean water and pat completely dry. Salt and pepper both sides. Preheat the oven to 375˚F. In the small bowl, whisk together the 3 tablespoons of sesame oil, the brown sugar, the rice wine vinegar and the grated ginger. Set aside. Place the mayo and sriracha in the quart bag and smoosh it to mix it completely. Place it in the fridge.
2. Put the large skillet on high heat. Toast the seeds. Do this without oil. Watch them carefully as they may burn. Place them on the plate until you need them.
3. Cover the bottom of the hot skillet in a light coat of sesame oil. Place the salmon, skin side down onto the HOT skillet and place it in the oven. You want to cook the salmon until you can flake it easily with a fork and the thermometer reads from 125-130˚F. DON”T OVERCOOK. Depending upon the thickness of the filet this can take from 8-14 minutes. At about the 6-minute mark, pour the sauce over the fish, making sure to get ginger on each piece.*****
4. When the fish is done, immediately upon removing it from the oven, using the spoon, baste it in any sauce that has cooked off and cover each slice in sesame seeds. Press the seeds down a little so they will adhere. Allow the fish to rest for about 3 minutes.
5. To plate the fish, make a bed of white rice and top it with a slice of fish. Snip a corner from the plastic bag of spicy mayo and make a zig-zag pattern with the mayo on each filet. Serve right away.