Honeyed Sake Salmon with Bok Choy

Honeyed Sake Salmon with Bok Choy

2 fillets of fresh salmon, skin on, if possible
1 TB honey
1/4 cup soy sauce
1/4 cup rice wine vinegar
1 TB fresh ginger, grated
2 cloves minced garlic
1/4 cup sake
1 large head of bok choy, white and green parts, sliced into 1 inch slices

sesame oil
soy sauce
1 tsp fresh ginger, grated
1 clove minced garlic
1 TB black sesame seeds

1 cup short grain brown rice
2 cups water

1 minced green onion, white and green parts
black sesame seeds

Marinate salmon in honey, tamari, vinegar, ginger and garlic for about 40 minutes. Remove salmon from marinade and reserve marinade.

Rinse the rice. Place rice and water in a heavy 2 quart saucepan with a well-fitting lid. Heat on high, uncovered, until it comes to a rolling boil. Reduce heat to very low, and cover with lid. Cook for 40 minutes or until water is absorbed. Keep warm, with lid on, until serving.

Spray a nonstick pan with a mist of olive oil. Heat pan over medium high heat until quite hot. Place salmon, skin side up, in pan and sear until nicely brown, about 4 minutes. Flip salmon so the skin side is down, and pour in the marinade. Once it starts to simmering, cover the pan and lower the heat to medium. Cook until the sauce is reduced by ½. Add sake and cover again. Simmer for about 3 minute to cook off the alcohol and reduce to a glaze. You want to have a few tablespoons of a nice thick sauce in the pan when you’re done. Don’t overcook it.

Meanwhile, heat a wok over medium high heat with a drizzle of sesame oil. Add the sliced white parts of the bok choi fresh grated ginger, and a clove of minced garlic. When they start to cook, add the leafy green bits and a little tamari. Saute till the green just wilt, and sprinkle with the sesame seeds. Remove from heat.

Flip the salmon skin side up and peel off the skin before serving.
To serve, place ½ cup brown rice in center of plate. (I like to serve this with Pineapple Rice, the recipe for that follows this one). Top with half of the bok choy, and top that with one serving of salmon. Pour half of the sauce from the salmon pan over the salmon, and sprinkle with sesame seeds and garnish with green onion.
It’s all about mouthfeel on this dish. The bok choy is nicely crunchy, the rice is nutty and chewy, and the salmon practically melts in your mouth. The sauce brings it all together in a way that is balanced and exciting, and gives it a rich flavor without being overly fatty.


Pineapple Rice

You'll need:

2 cups day-old rice, or cook a batch of fresh rice (you can use white or brown rice, jasmine or basamati, your choice)and decrease the water by about half a cup
About 1/4 to 1/2 fresh pineapple, or canned, cut into chunks
About 1 cup Spam or char siu (Chinese barbecued pork), diced
About a dozen shrimp or more, peeled and deveined
About 1 bunch green onions and/or cilantro, chopped
3 eggs, scrambled
Soy sauce or oyster sauce to taste

Optional: Add cashews or curry powder to taste.

Turn the heat on to high because everything will cook very quickly in the wok. Drizzle a bit of oil, scramble three eggs and set aside. Then add a little more oil again and saute the Spam or char siu and shrimp until the shrimp turns pink.

Add the rice and green onions or cilantro and mix thoroughly until slightly softened. At this point, you can add soy or oyster sauces if you wish. I think the Spam or char siu already has plenty of flavor so I generally don't add too much oyster sauce. Add the pineapple chunks at this point too.

Then add the eggs back in and mix again.

Add the cashews and/or curry powder, if so desired.

And you've now got a very pretty batch of pineapple fried rice. Red from the meat, pink from the shrimp, yellow from the pineapple, and green from the cilantro and green onions.


Maui Onion Straws

Ingredients

2 large Maui or Vidalia onions
2 cups buttermilk
2 cups flour
1 tablespoon salt (a little less than a full tablespoon)
lots black pepper, to taste
1/4-1/2 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1-2 quart canola oil (you can use peanut oil)

Directions

With a mandolin, good slicer or a very sharp knife, slice the onions very thin. If you use a knife, you should be able to see it through the onion slice. Place in a baking dish and cover with buttermilk for at least one hour.

Combine dry ingredients and set aside. Heat oil to 375 degrees F. in a deep fryer. If you don't have a deep fryer, use a Dutch oven or deep pot; add oil and heat to 375using a candy thermometer to determine the temperature of the oil. Remove the thermometer when the temp reaches 375.

When ready to cook, grab a handful of onions, cover well with the flour mixture, shake off the excess, and plunge the onions into the hot oil. Fry the onions in batches so the oil will stay hot. Fry for a few minutes and remove them when they turn golden brown. Drain on paper towels.

Repeat until all the onions are cooked. Serve immediately or store in a plastic container to add to other dishes when needed.