#49 Salmon should be slow cooked

I just returned from co-hosting a weekend-long yoga and fitness retreat for a great group of women. The retreat was a custom designed to give some much needed R & R for the normally busy and over-worked corporate group. Without a doubt the menu and food served at the retreat stole the show all thanks to the wonderfully talented Mish Lee Hobbs, our Red Seal Chef extraordinaire. My know-how of food preparation and wine tasting skills improved ten-fold after the weekend. The photo on the right is a picture of the actual dish served. Yummm.

Greatest lesson-learned: slow cooked salmon is a little piece of heaven. Here's the recipe of the dish Mish preparred for the group one evening. Try it out yourself and let me know what you think. I'm guessing you're going to enjoy it as much as we did.

Slow Cooked Salmon with Red Wine Butter

Yield: 4 servings

1c. Red wine

2 Shallots (1 diced fine and 1 rough chopped)

8T. Butter (6T soft and 2T diced)

2T. Finely chopped parsley

1T. Julienne parsley

3 Leeks (discard dark green parts, wash and julienne)

1/2T Marjoram

1/2T Thyme

1t. Crushed fennel seed

1/3c. Dry Vermouth

2c. Heavy Cream

1T Fresh Lemon Juice

4 Salmon Fillets (Skinless)

3T Olive oil

1 Clove garlic, diced fine

Salt and Pepper

Method:

1. Combine wine and rough chopped shallots in a small sauce pan, bring to a boil and reduce liquid until 1 T. remains. Strain and discard shallots. Once the wine is cooled add soft butter, fine diced parsley and season with salt and pepper. Place butter mixture on a piece of saran wrap and roll into a log. Refrigerate.

2. Heat remaining butter in a medium sauce pan and add leeks, marjoram, thyme, fennel and salt. Cook for 2 minutes until leeks are wilted. Add vermouth and cook on medium heat for 8 minutes. Add cream and lemon juice and simmer for 25 minutes. Adjust seasonings and keep warm.

3. Heat oven to 275F. Combine fine shallots, oil and garlic and rub onto salmon filets and season with salt and pepper. Place fish on a baking sheet lined with tin foil. Roast in oven for 12 minutes to reach medium rare. Cut butter into 4 equal pieces and place on fish, let cook in oven 3 minutes more. Divide leeks into 4 plates or shallow bowls and top with fish and garnish with julienne parsley.

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