Recipe: Smokey Salmon with Herb Paste (Guest Post from Fearless Grill)

Recipe Source: Based on a recipe found on the EggHead Forum’s recipe section (http://www.eggheadforum.com/index.php?option=com_recipes&Itemid=104&func=detail&id=367 ), though I made a number of changes.

In my quest to feed myself while my wife was away over Memorial Day Weekend, I decided to try some new recipes on the Big Green Egg. Though we’ve used it quite extensively to make meat, poultry, and vegetables, we really haven’t experimented that much with seafood. I had recently acquired some alderwood chips (from the BBQ Barn in Arlington MA, which is a great BBQ store, if you are in the area), and alder is supposed to be the best smoking wood for fish, so I decided to give it a try.

I visited the local supermarket, and obtained a nice looking salmon filet. Using the recipe from the EggHead Forum as a guide, I set out to cook a fishie. I didn’t have any sour cream in the house and as we don’t usually use this much, I decided to use yogurt instead, rather than waste a whole container of sour cream to get 1 tablespoon out of it. Similarly, I didn’t have fresh chives or tarragon on hand, but I do have oregano and thyme growing in my sunroom so I used those instead, rather than spending $6 on two packages of fresh herbs that I probably wouldn’t fully use. Finally, I added some garlic powder to the paste, because everything needs garlic, and this didn’t have any.

The fish turned out great. The flavor of the smoke and the herbs combined to make it taste wonderful, and smell even better. I could distinctly taste the fish, the smoke, the lemon, and the herbs, and they blended very well. It turned out moist and flaky, and left me wanting another piece when I was done.

Smokey Salmon with Herb Paste (Servings depend on quantity of fish. Approximate cost per serving not available)

Thick-cut salmon filet with skin on one side. Approximately ½ lb per person

1 Tbs finely minced fresh oregano

1 Tbs finely minced thyme

1 finely minced shallot

1.5 Tsp fresh lemon juice

1 Tbs Yogurt

Kosher salt (to taste)

Black Pepper (to taste)

Garlic Powder (to taste)

1 handful alderwood chips, soaked in water for at least 20 minutes

Equipment:

• Big Green Egg or other smoker

1. Prepare the herb paste. Start by finely chopping the herbs and the shallot.
2. Put the chopped herbs and shallot in a bowl along with the lemon juice, yogurt, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Mix thoroughly.
3. Apply the paste to the surface (non-skin side), cover loosely, and refrigerate until ready to cook. I put it on about 2 hours in advance.
4. Prepare your smoker. On my large Big Green Egg, I filled the firebox to the top with lump hardwood charcoal, but not up to the start of the fire ring. This kept the heat source far enough from the fish to allow direct cooking without burning. Once I had stabilized the temperature at 300 degrees Fahrenheit, I lifted off the cooking grate, scattered the alder chips over the fire, replaced the grate, and put the salmon, skin side down, in the center of the grate. I find that by preheating the grate, it usually isn’t necessary to oil it to prevent sticking. In this case, a bit of the skin stuck to the grate when I removed the fish, but the fish itself was fine.
5. Cook for ½ hour, or until the fish is done.
6. Using a spatula, carefully remove the fish from the smoker. Plate and serve.

Technorati Tags: Big Green Egg,grilled food,salmon,yogurt

Comments

[Alexandra MacArthur]

Thanks for the comment, this sounds amazing!