Name: Crisp-skinned salmon with pea purée and soft-herb salad
Prep time: 20 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 30 min
Yield: 4
Ingredients: 2 golden shallots, thinly sliced; 1 tsp caster sugar; 2 cups (loosely packed) mixed soft herb leaves (such as mint, chives, parsley, dill or chervil); 1½ tbsp grapeseed oil; 4 salmon fillets (about 180gm each), skin on, pin-bones removed; Pea purée; 30 gm butter, diced; 1 garlic clove, finely grated; 500 gm frozen baby peas; 80 ml chicken stock or water (⅓ cup); ¼ tsp ground fennel seeds (optional); 60 gm crème fraîche (¼ cup)

Elegant and full of great textures, this dish is special enough to serve at your next dinner party yet quick enough to whip up for a midweek meal. To keep things extra simple, strip the herb salad back to just two herbs.

Ingredients

2 golden shallots, thinly sliced

1 tsp caster sugar

2 cups (loosely packed) mixed soft herb leaves (such as mint, chives, parsley, dill or chervil)

1½ tbsp grapeseed oil

4 salmon fillets (about 180gm each), skin on, pin-bones removed

Pea purée

30 gm butter, diced

1 garlic clove, finely grated

500 gm frozen baby peas

80 ml chicken stock or water (⅓ cup)

¼ tsp ground fennel seeds (optional)

60 gm crème fraîche (¼ cup)

Method

1.Toss shallot, sugar and lemon juice in a small bowl to combine well, season to taste and leave to soften. Just before serving, add herbs, toss to combine and season to taste.

2.For pea purée, melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat, add garlic and fry gently until softened (1-2 minutes). Add peas, stock and fennel seeds, bring to the boil and cook until peas are just tender (1-2 minutes). Remove from heat, add crème fraîche and purée with a hand-held blender until smooth. Cover with foil to keep warm.

3.Heat oil in non-stick frying pan over high heat. Add salmon skin-side down, top with baking paper, weight with a heavy pan, and fry until skin is crisp (2-3 minutes). Turn over and fry until salmon is cooked to medium (1 minute). Remove from pan and rest for a minute. Arrange salmon on plates with pea purée and herb salad, drizzle with extra-virgin olive oil, season with black pepper and serve with lemon wedges.

Maxwell Adey Senior Food Editor & Stylist

Maxwell has always been passionate about food. Born into a restaurateur and award-winning produce farming family, he was strongly steered into pursuing a career in advertising after completing his Bachelor of Public Communication at University of Technology, Sydney. After a very short stint, he decided to enrol in Commercial Cookery at TAFE to follow his true passion. Maxwell started out working in some of Sydney’s finest restaurants (Est., Claude’s and Moon Park) which helped further his love of all things culinary and developed his technical ability to cook. Later, he was lured into the magical world of food publishing where he freelanced for ten years for notable Australian commercial and editorial brands. He has also run his own business where he sells his marinated olives, dressings and sauces at food markets and select retailers. He excitingly joins the Gourmet Traveller team to bring his technical and creative expertise in food to the brand.

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Styling by Emma Knowles

Ingredients

Method

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