Hi folks,
As requested, following is my recipe for this salad I like to make. I think Corkage requested it on the WS site, but I've slept since then and it's leaked right out of my head.
The trick behind this recipe is to use leftovers. Or, to let the rice and fish get close to room temperature before assembling. Cold rice and fish doesn't quite taste right - the flavors just aren't there.
I serve this with flat bread and a simple vinaigrette, sometimes with a crumbled soft cheese or grated hard cheese. All the measurements, with the exception of the rice recipe, are to taste. Add anything else in your larder that would seem to work - substitute the salmon for another fish, or chicken, or even thinly sliced, rare beef, add baby squashes, grape tomatoes, etc.
Gwen's Saffron & Salmon Salad
- Saffron Rice (recipe) (the raisins are good in this salad - leave them in the recipe)
- Salmon, chunks or flaked. Cook the salmon the way you like it. I grill it until medium to medium rare, having rubbed it with some lemon, crushed garlic, fresh-cracked pepper, etc.
- Romaine lettuce, torn in bite-sized pieces
- Tomatoes, chopped and seeded
- Ripe Olives, pitted and crushed but not chopped
- Red Onion, sliced in thin rings
- Cucumbers, peeled, seeded, chopped or sliced in pieces that are large enough that you can tell what it is
Preparation:
- Rub a crushed garlic clove on the inside of a large salad bowl (preferably wooden - it holds the flavors better).
- Toss all the vegetable ingredients together in the prepared bowl.
- Place about 1/2 cup of room temperature-to-tepid rice in the bottom of generous, single-serving bowls. This allows people to get a bite of rice with each bite of salad.
- Top with salad ingredients.
- Top that with the chunked or flaked fish.
- Drizzle a Vinaigrette on top of everything (see recipe below).
This is a very good salad.
LEMON SHALLOT VINAIGRETTE (recipe swiped from dailynews.com)
2 ounces lemon juice
2 ounces fresh thyme, chopped fine
1 ounce (a couple of good sized tablespoons) shallots, chopped fine
4 ounces (half-cup, but I'd add more) champagne vinegar (or other light vinegar)
16 ounces (2-cups, but I'd use less) of very good olive oil
Salt and black pepper to taste.
Whisk together ingredients in a bowl, while slowly drizzling in the oil - this will allow the mixture to emulsify and hold together longer while on the table.
Makes 2 1/2 cups.