Wednesday, October 7, 2009

Grilled salmon salad

Today I bought a delicious wild-caught salmon fillet at Trader Joe's, and I made Ina Garten's delicious grilled salmon salad, from The Barefoot Contessa Cookbook.

I've made this recipe before, though not for this blog, and I've been meaning to try Trader Joe's wild-caught salmon fillets, at the suggestion of my friend Diane. I was not disappointed, and I think I might switch permanently to the delicious and more nutritious fillets.

I love salmon and we eat it frequently, but I've never had salmon this red and beautiful:


Oh man. Awesome. It was expensive, obviously, but I've been reading "In Defense of Food" recently, which has convinced me to support quality over quantity; nutrition over price; and organic or free-range items over unethically raised farm animals. Wild-caught salmon are healthier for you than farm-raised salmon, and honestly, it was the best salmon I've ever had.

To prepare the salmon for the salad, you lightly sautee the fillet in olive oil, salt, and pepper:


Mmm. Then you chill the salmon fillet so it flakes apart easier. While it is chilling, you small-dice celery, red onions, and dill. You add that to a bowl with some capers, and there you go.

After you flake your salmon into the bowl, you mix the salad dressing, which is really simple: equal parts olive oil and flavored vinegar, mixed with some salt and pepper. Ina recommends raspberry vinegar, but I prefer red wine vinegar. Then you mix together:


Mmm. Look at those huge flakes. This salmon seemed more muscle-y and less fatty than the farm salmon I've had in the past, which apparently is to be expected. Also, the fact that it is more pink (as opposed to dyed pinkish) is all the shellfish that the wild salmon eat (that the farm fish obviously doesn't).

I served this salad in whole wheat pitas lined with dark baby greens. I am definitely switching to Trader Joe's wild Alaskan sockeye salmon - I'll be known as the girl who walks in, buys one fish fillet, and leaves!

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