Pan Seared Salmon with Satay Sauce

Serves 2

Ingredients

Pan seared Salmon

• 2 fillets of salmon, de-boned, skin on
• 1 tbsp ghee
• salt and pepper to season

Satay sauce

• 2 large (or 4 small) coriander roots, cleaned
• 2 tbsp smooth, raw, unrefined peanut butter
• 3 small garlic cloves, sliced
• 2cm piece of fresh ginger, peeled and grated
• small pinch of dried red chilli flakes
• 1 whole long red chilli, sliced
• 150ml coconut milk
• 1 1/2 tbsp brown sugar
• 3 tbsp fish sauce
• 1 kaffir lime leaf, sliced
• 1 tsp ketjap manis
• 6 coriander seeds, toasted and ground
• 2 white pepper seeds, toasted and ground
• 1/2 small brown onion, finely diced
• 1 kaffir lime leaf, torn
• juice from 1/2 lime

To Serve

• Spicy Cucumber Salad (recipe available in the ‘Recipe’ section)
• Lime cheek

Steps

1. Turn oven on to 170 degrees to preheat.
2. Ensure salmon fillets are at room temperature before starting this recipe.
3. For the Satay sauce, place the coriander root, peanut butter, garlic, ginger, chilli flakes, red chilli, coconut milk, brown sugar, fish sauce, lime leaf and ketjap manis into a blender. blend on high until mixture has combined. set aside.
4. In a small saucepan, place onion, ground coriander and white pepper seeds and the kaffir lime leaf. Cook on low until onions start to soften and are just starting to take on some colour.
5. Add the satay mixture into the onion mixture and cook on low for 5 minutes, stirring continuously.
6. Once the satay sauce is simmering, heat a medium sized non-stick pan over a high heat. Add the ghee to the pan.
7. Pat the salmon fillets completely dry with a paper towel and season the skin with a pinch of salt and pepper.
8. Once the non-stick pan is hot, place the salmon fillets in skin side down. Place fish weights on top of the fillets (note: if you don’t have a fish weight, use the pressure from the palm of your hands to push down on the fillets so the entire fillet of salmon skin is flush to the pan). Remove the fish weights (or pressure) after 1 minute.
9. Cook the salmon for 5 minutes, or until the skin is almost completely golden and crisp, then place the salmon into the oven to cook until just cooked, but inside flesh is still just ruby in colour. Take salmon out of the oven and rest for 1 minute before serving.
10. Before serving, remove the torn pieces of kaffir lime leaf from the satay sauce and finish with juice from 1/2 a lime. Stir until well combined.
11. Serve salmon with a good spoonful of satay sauce, a lime cheek and a bowl of Spicy Cucumber Salad.