I’ve written about salmon backs before, twice, actually, but they’re so good, and fast and economical they deserve more notice. If you can get salmon backs from your fishermonger, or counter, or farmer’s market, BUY THEM. Don’t be afraid, even though they’re weird looking and long and bony and flat and will appear to be the opposite of what you want in a good piece of fish. But they are full of flavor, and easy to fix. They will likely not be on display. ASK if you can get them.
Then, you can add this to your ways of preparing them:
sprinkle with salt
drizzle with white wine
Rub with a grainy, country dijon
fold over lots of leafy ferns of fresh dill
Refrigerate, covered, or in a bag for as long as you have. Grill or bake at high heat (425 degrees) for 5 minutes. Let cool slightly, and with a fork, flake the meat off the bones. This is easy. Serve immediately, or later at room temperature.
This is what they look like before cooking:
Salmon backs go beautifully with grilled bread, a side pasta dish, crackers of all sorts, eggs and bagels for a fancy brunch. They also make a really mean fish taco. Last night, Finn ate three.
Looking for a fast, economical, and really delicious fish dinner? One that’s appropriate for a school night, guests, or a weekend brunch?
The answer is Salmon Backs.
Pietro introduced me to them, and they’re basically a “throw away” part of the fish, and they do look like scraps and bones. But they cook up fast and truly do taste better than any other part. At about $4.95/lb., even now, they’re terrifically economical for a family. We’ve been eating them for a few salmon seasons now, and with the closing down of the California salmon fishing, and the rising price of salmon, they’ve been the only way we’ve been able to afford to keep salmon a regular part of our diet. Of course, they’re not locally sourced–Pietro gets them from a friend in Alaska, but buying from him does support him & his boat, and we regularly buy locally caught fish as well.
If you don’t have a Pietro but do have a good local fish monger, ask if s/he can get some for you.
To prepare:
Sprinkle the backs with salt on both sides. Pepper if you like.
Squeeze a little lemon, drizzle a little olive oil and white wine or sake if you like.
Grill on high heat for about 2 minutes on each side. Alternatively, you can roast/bake at 450 degrees for 5 minutes.
Let the salmon cool a little, then with a fork, flake the meat off the bones. This bit takes a little time, but it’s not hard, and the fish flakes easily. Be slightly careful of bones. They’re large and easy to see, but if you’re feeding kids I like to be extra careful.
You can serve any number of ways. I like to pile it on a plate with lemon wedges, sprinkled with tarragon or dill. You can mix it in salads or use it to top bagles. Good sides are a fresh Italian or French bread, white beans with olive oil, garlic, and salt, quick gazpacho, a green salad.
If you have any leftover, or are feeling ambitious, it’s also great in salmon cakes, which you can make by binding the salmon with egg, bread crumbs, and adding whatever other seasonings you like: parsley, tarragon, a little minced and sauteed onion, green or red peppers, etc. Use your imagination and whatever is in your pantry. Lightly flour the cakes and pan fry them in butter &/or olive oil.
Salmon backs are easily one of my kids’ favorite dinners, so I trust that all 5 of you who read this blog won’t buy them all up before I get to market on Sunday.
Salmon Backs are a seasonal favorite around here. If salmon is in season, we’re sure to eat this cut of the fish nearly once a week. It’s fast, flavorful, and really economical. I can’t afford to keep my family in salmon filets or steaks, but I can afford to feed them piles of salmon backs: in tacos, “ceviche” flavored, lox style, etc.
Earlier this week I made some on the grill and we ate it in soft Middle Eastern flatbread with cream sauce, cabbage, and lime. As usual, it was delicious. I had to stop myself at two, and Finn at a pile with his spoon. But we still had some leftover, which Ella called dibs on, but then I had not a tortilla in the house. I offered her crackers, a range of breads, fresh sesame rolls. She chose the rolls and made this sandwich, which is basically taco fillings on a bun. Of course you can use another cut of fish, but it wouldn’t be the same, because this is basically the fish equivalent of a sloppy joe: piles of light, loose grilled fish, a creamy sauce, a squeeze of lime for flavor, a bit of cabbage for crunch.
I was happy to let Ella take control of her meal, and even happier that she gave the family another way to keep seasonal eating fresh.
Grilled Salmon Back Sandwich
1-1 1/2 lbs Salmon backs
1/2 cup white wine
1/4 cup Meyer lemon juice
1 tsp salt
two handfuls of cilantro, leaves and stems + chopped cilantro for serving
2 cloves garlic chopped
Cream sauce: equal parts mayonnaise, sour cream or plain greek yogurt, and cumin to taste
shredded cabbage
lime wedges
Sesame Buns
Marinate salmon for a few hours in white wine, Meyer lemon juice, salt, a few handfuls of cilantro, garlic
Grill salmon on high heat for five minutes, until just cooked through.
Let salmon cool, then flake meat off the bone
Pile fish on fresh sesame buns and garnish with cream sauce, cabbage, and extra cilantro and lime as desired
I have been cooking a little more these days, and spring is making it easier: new food, fresher produce, etc. Last weekend I picked up a bag of salmon backs, which are my favorite cut of salmon for their economy, flavor and ease of preparation. And then I found some Mexcian limes, which to my mind make any meal worth eating. And I came up with these tacos. Citrus marinated salmon, topped with chopped green onion, cilantro, and cumin cream sauce. We ran out of tortillas, so my husband and I ate them with middle eastern flat bread, which might have been better. They’re totally delicious and were a huge hit with the kids, who added guacamole. They’ll add guacamole to anything. & really, why not?
These are easy enough to get on the table tonight, just in time for Cinco de Mayo!
Salmon “ceviche” tacos
serves 4
3/4 lb salmon (1 1/2 lb if you use backs, since there is a lot of bone)
juice of 1 orange, 2 limes, 1 lemon
1 tsp salt
1 stalk chopped fresh green garlic, including greens (or 1 clove garlic or 1 stalk green onion)
soft taco shells
chopped cilantro for garnish
Mexican lime for garnish (if none are available, use regular limes)
cumin cream sauce, see below
Cumin cream sauce
Mix equal parts plain, greek style yogurt with mayonnaise, the juice of one lime, and 1 tsp cumin, a pinch of salt.
Marinate salmon in ziplock bag in refrigerator with citrus, salt, and chopped garlic. for at least 1/2 hour or longer.
Grill or broil until cooked through.
Shred salmon into flakes.
Serve on tacos with cilantro, cream sauce, and limes for garnish.
We must have eaten this summer, and I must have cooked, but I can’t remember doing either. What I remember is a dark smudge of days, in which I often seemed engaged in a protracted struggle to not cry. Somewhere in there, we had meals, but I did not make ice cream, or roast peppers, or pack my freezer with pesto or roasted Early Girls. There were very few early evening cocktails.
It’s only in the past month, with the kids settled in school, the carpools worked out, the games firmly anchored in our weekends, that things have begun to feel normal again. The return to health–physical, psychic, emotional–was stealthy. But it must have been steady, too, because last week, as I stood over the kitchen counter eating ice cream straight from the freezer bowl I felt a twinge of joy: I had made something new. Things must be better. That the thing was ice cream, in September, and not in June, July, or August, slayed me a bit, reminding me of just how much summer we’d missed, and how much of that sweet, bright period was stolen from our family. But life is like this sometimes. Families, sons, daughters, parents, spouses…we take the bitter right along with the sweet. And we are lucky. We’ve healed. We’ve moved on.
So the ice cream was also providential, a kind of transition, a sweet thing welcoming our family back to itself. And I realized I’d been cooking other transitional things, too, meals to usher us from sickness to health, from instability to stability, from summer into fall. I cooked the bright Brandywines and Pineapples and Purple Cherokees that we always eat raw into a light but comforting heirloom tomato sauce. I barbecued tofu instead of sauteeing it. I turned the salmon backs into cakes. And I made this pizza, loaded with the last of summer’s fresh pesto, the final crop of sweet 100s, and the bitter bite of grilled raddichio. A little sweet, a little bitter, completely ravishing.
Pesto pizza with fresh mozzarella, grilled radicchio, and sweet 100s
Grilled Pesto Pizza with Radicchio and Sweet 100s
1 recipe pizza dough
grated,fresh mozzarella
1 small head radicchio
1 cup small cherry tomatoes (sliced if you’re not lazy like me)
pesto
olive oil
balsamic vinegar
salt
Quarter the radicchio and coat with salt, olive oil, and a sprinkle of balsamic vinegar. Grill until tender, or alternately, roast in a 350 degree oven for 20-30 minutes. Let cool and coarsely chop. Set aside.
Roll out a piece of homemade or store bought pizza dough.
Turn on your grill to HIGH and close the lid to preheat.
When the grill is hot, brush the grates with olive oil and immediately lay the pizza dough across the grill.
Cook 2-3 minutes, or until the dough begins to bubble and dry out. Using tongs, flip the dough immediately and cook until the dough puffs, another minute or 2.
Remove dough from grill and onto cutting board. Close grill and lower the heat to MEDIUM.
Quickly spread a layer of homemade or store-bought pesto over half-grilled dough.
Top pesto with fresh grated mozzarella, the radicchio, and a sprinkle of sweet 100s. Be judicious with the cheese and don’t overload your pie.
Return the pizza to grill and lower the lid. Cook until cheese is melted and bubbly. Check heat occasionally to make sure the crust isn’t burning on the bottom.
