Photo of Salmon Escabeche by Mario

Today’s recipe, Salmon Escabeche, is perfect for a quick and easy mid week meal, but above all it’s high in nutrition values.

The name Escabeche refers to a vast number of dishes in Mediterranean cuisines. It is not one traditional recipe that changes slightly from region to region, or country to country.  It is more of a guide line. It basically refers to marinating and cooking the fish or meat in acidic mixture, with the use of vinegar or citrus juice. What’s more interesting is that some recipes call for frying of the protein prior to marinating, so it is also a preserving technique.

Bit of history now 🙂 The ‘Escabeche technique’ was introduced to Mediterranean countries (Spain and Turkey, among others) between 8th and 14th century AD, so probably as far as 1200 years ago! That is a long time ago! Over the years, different cultures have adapted the use of that technique to their local product availability – different types of fish or meat, vegetables etc. So in a way Escabeche is similar to Pesto – the ingredients may vary, but the technique remains.

So here it is, my quick and easy recipe for Salmon Escabeche.

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Salmon Escabeche

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Prep time: 25 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Total time: 45 minutes

Serves 2

Recipe by Mario

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INGREDIENTS

• 2 fillets of salmon (approx. 110 g each)
• 35 g fennel, finely sliced (julienne)
• 35 g courgette, finely sliced (julienne)
• 35 g red pepper, finely sliced (julienne)
• 35 g yellow pepper, finely sliced (julienne)
• 35 g green pepper, finely sliced (julienne)
• 35 g carrot, finely sliced (julienne)
• 15 g shallot, finely sliced (julienne)
• Half a clove of garlic, finely chopped
• 1 tsp oregano
• 1 bay leaf
• 1 tsp dill, chopped
• 2 whole allspice berries
• 2 thin slices of root ginger
• Zest of half an orange
• Juice of a whole orange
• 1 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
• Sea salt
• Freshly cracked black pepper

INSTRUCTIONS

1. Grab a bowl and throw in all of the vegetables (fennel, courgette, mix peppers, carrot, shallot and garlic).
2. Add herbs and spices (oregano, bay leaf,  dill, allspice berries and ginger), orange zest and juice, olive oil, white wine vinegar, season with salt and pepper, then give it a good toss, making sure all of the ingredients are nicely coated in the marinade.
3. Take two pieces of kitchen foil (approx. 40 cm long each) and lay it one onto another (in the shape of a cross).
4. Put marinated vegetables in the centre the foil, place both of the salmon fillets on top of it, then pour marinating juices all over.
5. Fold the foil up into a parcel and wrap all of the edges together, making sure it’s all sealed, so the marinade won’t spill out (see notes).
6. Put Salmon Escabeche on a baking tray, then cook in a pre-heated oven, 180 degrees Celsius, for about 20 minutes.
7. Once cooked, take it out of the oven and open the parcel (see notes).
8. Divide the vegetables between two shallow bowls, then place a salmon fillet on top of each serving, drizzle with cooking juices and enjoy!

NOTES

• When wrapping and sealing the foil, leave some air space inside – this will create a steamer-like environment, which is perfect for this type of dish. It’s like a papillote, but using kitchen foil rather than baking parchment.
• When you open the parcel, be careful – the pressure inside is slightly higher than on the outside environment, therefore it will push out hot steam.
  

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