After spending seven years as a private chef cooking and travelling on yachts, Lauren has taken her experiences, love of food and creativity to her own café in the town of Oxted in Surrey. She can be found in the kitchen at The Deli Oxted (@the_deli_oxted) and you can follow along with her own cooking journey on @sailingfooddiaries where she shares all things food!
Total time to make : 25 minutes Time to prep : 15 minutes
Servings : 2
Ingredients
2 salmon fillets, skin removed (always go for wild, sustainably sourced)
100ml soy sauce (Tamari for GF)
50ml maple syrup
50ml sriracha sauce
3 tbsp sesame oil
1 tbsp sesame seeds (optional)
1 tsp Chilli Flakes (optional)
Serving Suggestions:
Black or wild rice
Cavalo nero
Charred tenderstem broccoli and/or green beans
Method
Crispy salmon skin
Preheat a fan oven to 180C and line a baking sheet with baking paper
Start by laying the salmon on a chopping board, scale side down. Using a sharp knife, gently and carefully remove the salmon fillet from the skin. Pat the skin dry with a paper towel to absorb any excess moisture (helping it to crisp up) and lay onto the baking paper, flesh side down, seasoning generously with sea salt. Pop this into the oven - it should take about 15 minutes in the oven to become nice and crispy!
Soy & maple glaze
Meanwhile, mix together the soy sauce, maple syrup, sriracha and 2 tbsp of the sesame oil into a shallow dish. Lay in the salmon fillets, generously crack over some black pepper and let them marinade whilst you cook your sides
Cavalo Nero
Put the rice on to cook in lightly seasoned water and prepare your vegetables
Blanch the cavalo nero for 3 minutes in boiling water and then drain, set to one side. In a large frying pan set over medium-high heat, add the remaining 1 tbsp sesame oil and add the broccoli and/or green beans. Toss them for 2 minutes, then make space in the centre of the pan for your salmon fillets. Add them to the pan, scraping in all the sauce - be careful as it may spit!
Once the edges of the salmon start to cook, carefully flip the fillets over and add the cavalo nero
To serve
Remove the salmon skin from the oven, fluff your cooked rice with a fork and plate! Finish with sesame seeds, chilli flakes & the crispy salmon skin for texture
Good to know
This recipe can also be enjoyed chilled the next day, simply flake the salmon and mix everything together, pop into a bowl and enjoy as a hearty salad
Feel free to leave out the crispy skin - it's not to everyone's fancy but it definitely adds an extra dimension