This salmon recipe starts with a sweet honey-lemongrass-ginger marinade. The salmon is then grilled or pan-fried in this marinade/sauce - the same sauce that is then used to stir-fry the asparagus. Served with plenty of Thai sticky rice or Japanese sushi rice, this salmon dish looks elegant and tastes even better. Add it to your menu this week, either for your family (kids love it!), or as a party or special-occasion dish for you and your friends.
Prep Time: 20 minutes
Cook Time: 6 minutes
Total Time: 26 minutes
Yield: SERVES 4
Ingredients:
- 4 salmon steaks (or an equal amount of salmon fillets)
- 1 bunch of asparagus, hard ends snapped off
- 3 Tbsp. healthy oil (for frying)
- MARINADE:
- 5 Tbsp. regular soy sauce
- 2 tsp. dark soy sauce
- 1 Tbsp. frozen prepared lemongrass, OR finely minced fresh lemongrass
- juice of 2 limes
- 6 Tbsp. honey
- 1 tsp. freshly ground coriander
- 1/4 tsp. cinnamon
- pinch of nutmeg
- 1 thumb-size piece galangal OR ginger, grated
- 2 Tbsp. fish sauce (available in the Asian section of most supermarkets)
- 2 spring onions, thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup fresh coriander leaves and stems, cut into small pieces
- 2 Tbsp. water
Preparation:
- To make the marinade: combine all marinade ingredients in a sauce pan. Stir while you bring this sauce to a boil. Remove from heat and do a taste test for a balance of saltiness and sweetness (note that the honey is this recipe's key ingredient - the marinade should taste sweet). Set marinade aside.
- To prepare salmon: if using steaks, either leave whole or cut them in half lengthwise, removing the central bone. If using fillets, simply cut into strips lengthwise. Place in a wide-bottomed dish and pour half the marinade over - reserve the rest for later. Carefully turn salmon to ensure every side is saturated with marinade. Cover and refrigerate until ready to grill or fry (at least 30 minutes, or overnight).
- If grilling: brush grill with a little vegetable oil, then grill salmon strips 3-5 minutes per side, depending on thickness (salmon is done when it flakes apart easily and is no longer dark pink inside). Whole steaks or fillets will take longer.
- If pan-frying: place a little oil in a wok or frying pan. When hot, add the salmon pieces together with any remaining marinade from the bottom of the dish. Fry 2-3 minutes each side, or until the salmon is no longer translucent inside. Tip: when wok/pan becomes too dry or sticky, add a little water 1 Tbsp. at a time.
- To cook asparagus, place a little oil in a wok or frying pan and set over medium-high heat. (If you used a wok/frying pan to cook the salmon, you can use the same one for the asparagus while keeping salmon warm in the oven).
- When the wok/pan is hot, add the asparagus plus 2-3 Tbsp. of the remaining marinade and stir-fry until asparagus has turned bright green and is tender but still slightly crisp (2-3 minutes). Add a little water to the wok/pan if it becomes too dry or sticky.
- To serve, place salmon strips on one side of a serving platter. Place asparagus on other side next to the salmon, and pour remaining marinade/sauce over salmon. A perfect accompaniment to this dish is my Thai Sticky Rice Recipe. Japanese sushi rice also works very well.
Additional Tip: The asparagus can also be grilled - just marinate at least 10 minutes beforehand and baste with a little additional marinade. (My husband likes the marinade-sauce so much, that I usually double the recipe, then serve the extra warm on the side.)
