Chef Johns Salmon Recipes

CHEF JOHN'S BAKED LEMON PEPPER SALMON

Steps:

• Whisk together lemon juice and black pepper in small bowl. Add mayonnaise, miso paste, Dijon mustard, and cayenne pepper to lemon-pepper mixture; whisk together.
• Spread the lemon-pepper mixture over salmon fillets. Reserve about a tablespoon for later use.
• Cover salmon with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.
• Preheat oven to 450 degrees F (230 degrees C). Line a baking sheet with parchment paper or silicone baking mat.
• Place fillets on the prepared baking sheet. Spread remaining lemon-pepper mixture on fillets without letting it pool around base. Sprinkle with a pinch more black pepper and a generous amount of sea salt.
• Bake in the preheated oven until the fish flakes easily with a fork, 10 to 15 minutes.

CHEF JOHN'S SALMON LOAF

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C). Generously butter a loaf pan.
• Melt butter over medium heat in a saute pan until bubbling. Toss in onion, give the pan a quick shake, and stir with a wooden spoon; cook for 1 minute. Turn off the heat and allow to cool.
• Place salmon in a large mixing bowl and mash with a fork. Add cracker crumbs, salt, cayenne pepper, Worcestershire sauce, rice vinegar, butter, and onions; mix and mash with a spatula or spoon until smooth.
• Separate eggs, adding whites to a clean glass, metal, or ceramic bowl and adding yolks to salmon mixture. Mix egg yolks and salmon until well combined.
• Whisk whites to medium stiff peaks. Gently fold into salmon mixture in 2 additions.
• Transfer salmon mixture into the prepared loaf pan. Smooth the top with a spatula to even it out and shake and tap the pan to remove any air bubbles.
• Bake in the center of the preheated oven until a toothpick comes out clean, about 45 minutes. Let rest for 5 minutes, then carefully turn loaf out onto a cutting board. Slice and serve.

CHEF JOHN'S FRESH SALMON CAKES

Steps:

• Heat extra virgin olive oil in a skillet over medium heat. Cook and stir onion, red pepper, celery, and a pinch of salt in hot oil until onion is soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add capers; cook and stir until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat and cool to room temperature.
• Stir salmon, onion mixture, mayonnaise, 1/4 cup bread crumbs, garlic, mustard, cayenne, seafood seasoning, salt, and ground black pepper together in a bowl until well-mixed. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate until firmed and chilled, 1 to 2 hours.
• Form salmon mixture into four 1-inch thick patties; sprinkle remaining panko bread crumbs over each patty.
• Heat olive oil in a skillet over medium-heat. Cook patties in hot oil until golden and cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes per side.

CHEF JOHN'S SALMON CAKES

Steps:

• Stir salmon, eggs, lemon juice, capers, salt, black pepper, and cayenne pepper together in a bowl until well-combined.
• Crush saltine crackers with your hands into the salmon mixture and mix well. Wrap the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate, 30 minutes to overnight.
• Dust a plate with half the bread crumbs. Divide salmon mixture into 4 portions and shape into patties; place onto prepared plate and sprinkle remaining bread crumbs atop the salmon patties.
• Melt butter and oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Cook patties in hot oil until cooked and heated through, about 5 minutes per side.

CHEF JOHN'S SALMON MANGO BANGO

Steps:

• Stir mango, lime juice, pepper jam, and cilantro together in a bowl. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for relish flavors to combine, about 30 minutes.
• Season salmon fillets with sea salt.
• Heat oil in a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat until oil begins to smoke. Place salmon, flesh-side down, in the hot skillet and cook until edges are just starting to cook through, about 2 minutes. Flip fillets, remove skillet from heat, and let fillets sit in the hot pan until cooked through, 2 to 3 minutes more. Transfer to a plate and top with chilled mango relish.

CHEF JOHN'S SALMON

Steps:

• Season salmon fillets with kosher salt. Line a baking baking sheet with foil and brush lightly with vegetable oil.
• Preheat oven's broiler on high and set the oven rack about 8 inches from the heat source.
• Process garlic, tarragon, and parsley in a blender or mortar and pestle to form a loose paste.
• Mix mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, and cayenne pepper into garlic paste until combined.
• Place salmon fillets skin side down on the baking sheet. Spoon herb spread over the top and sides of each fillet.
• Cook under the preheated broiler until fillets are well-browned, about 5 minutes. Turn the broiler off and turn the oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Bake until the internal temperature of the salmon is 130 degrees F (55 degrees C) and salmon flakes easily with a fork, about 3 to 4 minutes.