Poached Salmon with Minted Yogurt Sauce

Cooking is often the most Zen activity of my day. Especially when I come across a recipe that is elegant in its simplicity, beautiful to look at as I am preparing it and finally, a wonderful experience when it is eaten.  This recipe, which came from Food and Wine, falls right into that category.  It’s so soothing looking that I made its cooking the main illustration above.  With its parsley and dill branches looking like reeds in a stream, it’s a treat just to look at.  But the surprise came when we tasted our first bites.

I had not poached salmon for quite a while, choosing instead to broil or pan saute the fish.  I had almost completely forgotten how tender poached salmon can be—blissfully so in this case.  Add the minted yogurt sauce and you have a combination of sweet salmon and tart sauce.  The mint has the added bonus of perfuming the sauce.  The simple potatoes are something I make often. Into a small cast iron pot goes about a cup of little reds and yukons per person, a knob of butter and a few turns of the salt and pepper grinders and in about a half hour, after a 30 minute stint in a 375 degree oven, you have perfectly cooked, tender little morsels to pop into your mouth. This is an excellent weeknight dinner as it takes no time at all and, if you feel the way I do about it, it melts away the tensions of the day. Zen, in case you’ve forgotten, is the Buddhist practice of meditation and intuition.  And when I can find that in my kitchen, I’m all for it.

Recipe for Poached Salmon with Minted Yogurt Sauce from Food and Wine:

Total Time: 40 minutes. Serves 6.

For the Minted Yogurt Sauce:

1 cup plain whole-milk yogurt

1/4 cup packed mint leaves

2 tablespoons packed parsley leaves

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon finely grated lemon zest

1/2 tablespoon fresh lemon juice

Kosher salt

For the Salmon:

2 cups dry white wine

10 parsley sprigs

10 dill sprigs, plus more for garnish

1 tablespoon whole black peppercorns

1 lemon slice

Six 6-ounce salmon fillets with skin

Kosher salt

 

 

First make the Yogurt Sauce:

1.

In a blender, combine all of the ingredients and season with salt. Puree the yogurt sauce until it is smooth. Transfer the sauce to a bowl and refrigerate.

 

 

 

 

 

Then, Prepare the Salmon:

1.

In a deep skillet wide enough to fit the salmon fillets in a single layer, combine the wine, parsley, dill, peppercorns, lemon and 2 cups of water. Bring to a boil.

2.

Season the salmon fillets with salt and add them to the pot in a single layer. Cover and poach over moderately low heat until the salmon is just cooked through, about 8 minutes.

3.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the salmon to a work surface. Remove and discard the salmon skin. Transfer the fillets to plates and drizzle with some of the yogurt sauce. Garnish with dill and serve with potatoes.