Silvia Lehrer’s Cooking Column

It has been said that the discovery of a new dish is like discovering a new star. In the February issue of Food & Wine magazine, I came upon a recipe for poached salmon salad. The salmon is seasoned with salt, pepper and lemon rind and poached in a plastic Ziploc bag. Tender, moist salmon emerged from its plastic confine. Often I’ve tried to duplicate the texture by poaching the fish in olive oil from recipes given to me by chefs. But alas nothing came close to the buttery, soft texture and flavor I experienced with this technique. For a twist on the Food & Wine recipe, I roasted the asparagus rather than simmering them, adjusted the lemon vinaigrette to my taste and practicality of ingredients and, rather than discard the lemon rind when serving the final dish as in the magazine, I left it on the salmon for garnish and a jolt of a lemony crunch. I may not have discovered a new dish but surely this is my favorite new way to poach salmon.

The classic salad Nicoise is a simple, do ahead way to entertain guests for lunch. As one of the cold weather escapees from the north, I’ve entertained visiting friends while here in Florida. The haricot verts and hard cooked eggs can be prepared the day before and refrigerated in suitable containers. Sure it’s nice to grill a beautiful piece of tuna in the summer, but a true classic tuna Nicoise calls for canned tuna. Just be sure it’s of the highest quality, imported Italian tuna in oil. The rest is just a matter of assembly to wow your guests. Happy cool weather salad days.

POACHED SALMON SALAD
WITH ROASTED ASPARAGUS

The technique of poaching salmon in a plastic bag renders the fish buttery and tender.

Serves 4

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

1. Break asparagus stems at the point they bend. Trim the points along the spears and wash the vegetable. Pat dry with paper towel. Pour oil on a cookie sheet and season with salt and pepper. Add asparagus and toss to coat in the seasoned oil. Place in preheated oven and roast for 8-10 minutes until asparagus are tender, but not soft. Transfer to a plate and let cool.

2. Place chopped shallot, parsley and Dijon mustard in a mixing bowl, add lemon juice and whisk in the olive oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside. Cut wide rinds from the lemon then cut slits in each rind to create a fan shape – if this is challenging just cut strips of lemon rind.

3. Bring a large, deep saucepan filled with water to a brisk simmer. Season salmon fillets with salt, pepper and lemon rind. Slide fillets into one or two large Ziploc bags. Press out any excess air and close the bag. Poach the salmon in the bag at a gentle simmer for about 6 minutes. Carefully flip the bag and poach for another minute or two until just the surface of the salmon is opaque. Remove from water and let cool.

4. Arrange mesclun greens, equally divided on 4 plates. Add asparagus spears alongside the greens and top greens with a salmon fillet. Garnish with lemon zest. Drizzle over the dressing and serve at room temperature.

TUNA NICOISE SALAD

The classic approach to Tuna Nicoise is to prepare the salad with fine quality Italian canned tuna in oil.

Serves 6

1. Trim, rinse and cook beans in salted boiling water to cover for 6-7 minutes until barely tender. Drain and shock in ice water to retain color. Place potatoes in cold water and bring to a boil. Add salt and cook with cover ajar for 16-18 minutes until tender when pierced with a knife. Hard cook eggs for 12 minutes, drain in cold water and shell. These ingredients can be prepared up to several of hours ahead. Refrigerate beans and eggs as necessary but do not refrigerate potatoes.

2. In a mixing bowl whisk lemon juice, mustard, salt and pepper, slowly adding olive oil until homogenous. Stir in herbs.

3. To assemble salad, arrange lettuce cups on large plates and equally divide tuna in the cups. With an eye to presentation, place asparagus, potatoes, eggs and tomatoes around or alongside tuna. Drizzle lemon dressing sparingly over each salad. Dot the plates with olives and capers and serve at room temperature.