Herb Crusted Salmon with Creamy Leeks & Peas

I love salmon - you really can cook it in so many different ways. Its a delicious flavoured fish too. I like it cooked with lots of spices normally but last night the herbs in the garden, in spite of the freezing weather, were looking lush. So I grabbed a pack of Panko dried breadcrumbs and quickly made this. It was all ready in less than half an hour and both myself and The Bloke loved it!

You can use any of the 'soft' herbs you like for this as long as they are fresh and not dried. I used coriander, parsley, chives and some Thai basil (I had some leftover from the Thai salad the other night). You can also use a different type of fish if you like, too.

 Ingredients:

2 skinless fillets salmon
1 cup dried breadcrumbs
lots of fresh herbs, chopped
zest of 1 lemon
30g butter, melted

Mix the breadcrumbs with the herbs, zest and butter. Press a thick layer onto the salmon fillets and put onto a greased baking tray. Pop in the oven at 200 C for 20 minutes.

 

For the leeks and peas:

2 large (or 4 small) leeks, sliced
2 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. oil
2 cloves garlic, chopped
1 glass wine
1/2 cup peas
80ml double cream
salt & pepper

Cook the leeks in the butter and oil until going slightly golden. Add the garlic and cook for  2 minutes before adding the wine. Turn the heat up and let the wine cook off the alcohol for about 4 minutes. Add the peas and cream and cook on a medium simmer for a further 5 minutes. Season with a little salt and plenty of black pepper. Serve alongside the fish with some boiled new potatoes. Lovely!

Thai Noodle Salad with Chicken Satay

This may sound daft to some but one of my favourite brain activities, is to take some meat or fish out of the freezer in the morning - for dinner later that day, and spend the day on and off musing what I can make with it. I do this a lot.

And last Saturday was no exception. Chicken mini fillets were set on the side to defrost. Now I just had to think..

Chicken mini fillets are just perfect for satay chicken. You just marinade the meat and make a satay sauce. Grill the chicken on skewers and top with the peanut sauce. Delicious. I have put the recipe up before - this post is all about the noodle salad - and you can find the recipe for the Chicken Satay here. The noodle side dish was fresh, quick, colourful and tasty. And goes well with anything!

Ingredients:

Flat rice noodles
1 carrot
1 courgette
25g fresh Thai basil
25g fresh coriander
3 spring onions (scallions)

For the dressing:

1 clove garlic
1 Thai red chilli
1/4 tsp. salt
8 green beans (cut into 1 inch)
5-6 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 tbsp. fish sauce
1 tbsp. palm sugar (normal will work too)
Juice of 1 lime

Method:

To make the dressing, get a pestle and mortar and pound the garlic and red chilli with the salt until its a paste. Add the green beans and pound a bit more, then add the tomatoes and bash (the beans and tomatoes just need to be a bit squished). Add the fish sauce, sugar and lime juice and mix well. Set to one side.

Cook the noodles as per pack instructions and drain. Use a potato peeler to cut ribbons of raw carrot and raw courgette. Slice the spring onions and chop the herbs. Add the veg and herbs to the noodles and pour over the prepared sauce. Stir to combine and serve. Top with some chopped peanuts if you like. The taste is beautiful and so full of flavour.