Naomi's wine suggestion: A good fruity and robust Pinot Noir from Ontario, Oregon, or of course, Bourgogne.
Ingredients:
4 fresh Sockeye salmon steaks, tied (click on "Cooking Tips" above to learn more about this technique)
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
fine sea salt
fresh cracked black pepper
For the pilaf:
1 cup dry wild rice (not pre-cooked)
1 small carrot, diced
1 onion, diced
1 stick celery, diced
2 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 1/2 cups water
fine sea salt
fresh cracked black pepper
For the vegetables:
1 bunch fresh rapini, stems trimmed
fine sea salt
For the salsa:
1 medium beet
1 tbsp. extra virgin olive oil
2 tsp. quality red wine vinegar
1 tsp. balsamic vinegar
1 tsp. chopped fresh tarragon
fine sea salt and fresh cracked black pepper to taste
For the salsa: Wrap beet in foil. Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Place beet in oven-proof pan and bake until tender, approximately 45-60 minutes, depending on the size of the beet. Cool in the foil. When cool, slip off the skin and dice finely. Combine diced beet with other salsa ingredients, chill and reserve.
Prepare wild rice (which can be done ahead, and reheated with great results in the microwave just before serving); Heat olive oil in pot, gently saute diced vegetables until they start to soften but not brown. Stir in wild rice and coat with oil. Add water, bring to a light boil and season to taste with salt and pepper. Turn heat to low, cover pot; cook for 35 minutes. Check rice. Grains should be split and tender. If not, cover and cook 10 minutes more.
Rub olive oil into tied steaks on both sides and marinate, covered, in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
For the rapini: Trim 1/2" off stems of rapini and wash stalks. 10 minutes before serving, place rapini in a pot with 1/4" of water and a good pinch of salt. Cover pot and bring to a rolling boil. Remove from heat; let sit 1-2 minutes. Remove lid and serve. Optional: drain rapini and toss in 1 tbsp. unsalted butter. Cooked rapini will keep warm in the pot, lid ajar, for a few minutes, if your fish isn't quite done yet.
For the salmon: Remove steaks from refrigerator. Preheat a heavy-bottomed skillet until hot. Season the steaks with salt and pepper to taste. Add 1 Tbsp. olive oil to skillet, heat; sear salmon steaks until browned and crusty on one side. Flip and sear until crusty on other side. The second side will take less time. Cook to your desired tastes.
To Serve: Place a portion of the pilaf in centre of plate; surround with rapini stems. Place salmon steak on top of pilaf; top with small mound of beet salsa for a restaurant-style presentation!
4 servings Cooking Tips: Why go through the trouble to tie the fish in rounds? Inevetibly, fish steaks overcook at the "legs", so tying the steaks ensures an even cooking throughout.
TYING SALMON STEAKS: A sharp paring knife or boning knife is best for this procedure. Also helpful are a freshly washed pair of needle-nosed pliers that from now on, you will use only for fish!
Look for the freshest cut salmon you can find. In fact, if you know your fishmonger is carrying Sockeye, ask them to cut it to your specifications. What you want are 6-8 oz. centre-cut steaks, about an inch thick. Sockeye is a bit smaller than Atlantic salmon, but an inch-thick steak should be close to 8 oz. It is thickness and not weight that determines the cooking time for fish. A good gauge is 10 minutes cooking per inch of thickness, but wild salmon should be served a bit pink in the centre, so cut down on that timing 1-2 minutes per side, depending on your taste. Fish also continues to cook after it comes off the heat.
Salmon steaks are cut vertically through the entire body of the fish. In terms of bone structure, what you will find is the backbone in the fleshy part of the steak, rib bones along the inside of each "leg" of the steak (the skinny parts), and pin bones (depending on what section of the fish the steaks are cut from) running through the top of the steak, near the backbone. The steak should have the skin attached, but should have been scaled already, if your fish market is reputable.
First, carefully make a slit up the inside of each "leg" to the centre bone (the backbone), to free the ribs. Leave as much meat on the legs as possible. Using a knife or kitchen scissors, simply snip off the ribs at the centre bone and discard. Do not remove the centre bone.
Next, carefully separate the skin on one "leg" just from the meat, and only up to the level of the centre bone. Carefully remove the pin bones with the needle-nosed pliers on both sides of the steak.
Now you should have a steak with only the back bone, and two "legs", one with a loose skin flap. Repeat procedure with all four steaks. Cut four long pieces of string. Tuck the flesh of the "leg" with the skin flap into the center of the steak. Fold the other "leg" around it. Wrap the skin flap around the outside of the other "leg". Tie with a piece of the string, like a filet steak, to make a round shape. Cut off excess string with scissors. Alternately, you could secure the salmon steak with toothpicks, but tying it gives a better shape. Don't forget to remove the string before serving!
WILD RICE: Wild rice is actually a grass, and not a "rice", in the true sense. It is a hardy, flavourful grain that requires longer cooking than white rice. Make sure your wild rice grains are split and broken before serving, and of course, taste them for texture and seasoning. Like a quality Basmati, longer grains generally mean more flavour. Wild rice is expensive as it is hand-harvested, much like saffron. Still, for such a wonderful product, you should look for the best.
RAPINI: Rapini is also known as "Broccoli Rabe", and may be labelled as such in your market. It has a pleasant, slightly bitter flavour that compliments the sweetness of the beets and the richness of the salmon extremely well.
ROASTING BEETS: When you roast a beet in foil, you don't let out any of the sweet, flavourful juices. Much of this flavour is lost in boiling. Another benefit of this method is that you don't have to peel them ahead of cooking! Beets peel much easier after cooking.
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