Seafood Recipes - Part 4

with D.C. Reid

After Catching and Cleaning Come Cooking and Consuming

Rounding out my salmon favourites is never easy; there are simply toomany recipes from which to choose. However, just a few more hearty, spicymeals. I lean to spices in all my cooking. A dose of pungency enlivens virtuallyany dish, and the following are no exception.

Black-Eyed Salmon

4 salmon steaks
3 glasses red wine
2 Tbsp black bean sauce
2Tbsp grated fresh ginger
2 tsp olive oil
2 cloves crushed garlic
bok choy
freshly ground pepper, salt

Toast yourself and drink the first glass of red wine - B.C. of course!With great reluctance pour the second glass into a pan and mix in the beansauce, ginger, garlic and oil. Bring to a boil then simmer for 5 minutes,while beginning to sip the third glass of red wine. In a frying pan greasedwith butter, place the salmon steaks, adding a dash of salt and grindingon pepper. After five minutes turn the steaks over, slosh on the sauce,creating a southern style black-eyed salmon. In the few minutes it takesto finish the third glass of red wine, steam the bokchoy and serve allwith crusty Portuguese rolls.

Salmon Fiddle Dee Dee

2 lbs chunked salmon
2 Tbsp Asian fish sauce
1 tin oysters
2 tsp brown sugar
1 red chili pepper
1 green pepper
1 lb fiddleheads
1 Tbsp minced mint

Mix together the fish sauce, sugar and diced chili. Add the oyster oiland salmon chunks to a frying pan, cooking on a medium element for 3 minutes.Add the sliced green pepper, the fiddleheads and the sauce, stirring asyou cook. Cover and let steam for 5 minutes. When the salmon flakes fromyour fork and your mouth begins to water, zap the minty oysters for 25 secondsin the nuker. Serve in a pre-heated 9 by 13 inch dish and have the pipers,er, fiddlers, announce your entry.

Shish ke Salmon

2 lbs chunked salmon
1 green pepper
1 lb brown mushrooms
1 large onion
2 cloves minced garlic
4 oz China Lily soy sauce
2 limes
4 oz liquid honey
4 oz parmesan cheese
6 Beck beer

Slice the vegetables in large pieces and add to the salmon. Pour on thelime juice, garlic and honey. Mix gently and put in the fridge for the afternoon.Go and mow the lawn then set out the garden gnomes, croquet set and chairsfor guests. Clean the grill, oil it well and fire-up to a medium heat. Skewerthe ingredients in alternating rows and cook for ten minutes. Baste withthe remaining sauce. One turn should be enough - too much turning spoilsthe shish. While kebabing, have the little folk (they'll love being calledthis) fetch the Beck's, and hold forth with your vast knowledge of croquet'smore arcane rules. Remember, this is not dangerous; you are in your ownbackyard and you are cooking everyone's dinner.

Salmon Stew Fer You

2 lbs chunked salmon
4 chunked potatoes
1 sliced large onion
4 sliced carrots
1 sliced tomato
1 cup sliced beans
4 oz minced cilantro
2 tsp pepper corns
salt to taste

Place potatoes in 5 cups of cold water in a large pot. Add salt and pepperand simmer for 5 minutes. Add carrots, tomato, beans and onion. Simmer for10 minutes, stirring occasionally and taking a sniff to reassure yourselfthat you are one of the great stew chefs on your block. Crush the peppercorns into the brew. Add the salmon and continue simmering under a lid for5-10 minutes. Taste and adjust salt to your palate. Add the cilantro, setthe table and call the crew for stew.

Creme de la Creme Casserole

3 cups previously-cooked salmon
8 oz brown mushrooms halved
2 medium onions sliced
4 oz cheddar cheese
1 Tbsp minced fresh dill
1 glass Peruvian white wine
2 cups white sauce
salt and pepper to taste
sprinkling of paprika

On cold winter evenings when the younger set sits, noses pressed againstthe frosting window dreaming of sunnier days, what could be better thana treat for dinner? And which child can resist casserole and pasta? Firstprepare the white sauce: mix 2 Tbsp melted butter and 2 Tbsp flour togetherover high heat, then add 2 cups of hot milk, salt and pepper, stirring 2-3minutes until a creamy sauce results. Set aside.

In another saucepan, place butter, onions and dill. Cook 3-4 minutesover low heat. Sprinkle in the mushrooms and half the wine, then sip therest reverentially as though an El Nino were warming your veins as youstir over medium to high heat for another 4-5 minutes. Mix in the whitesauce, cooking another few minutes. Add salt to taste. Mix in the salmongently and transfer the meal to a baking dish. Grate on the cheddar cheese,sprinkle on the paprika and brown for 5 minutes until bubbly.

Serve with your choice of pasta, clinking glasses with your significantother as the younger set raises forks about to dig in. Ah the subtle marriageof Norman Rockwell and Peruvian white.