Blackened Salmon with Citrus Yogurt Sauce

Based loosely on “Broiled Salmon with Citrus Yogurt Sauce” from epicurious.com and “Blackened Salmon with Blue Cheese Sauce” from foodnetwork.com.

Ingredients:

1-4 lbs Salmon*

1 Tbsp Olive Oil

1 Tbsp Butter

* The quantities listed are easily enough for four pounds of salmon, and probably more.

For the Dry Rub:

1 Tsp Oregano

1 Tsp Parsley

1 Tsp Black Pepper

2 Tbsp Paprika

1½ Tbsp Salt

1½ Tbsp Cayenne Pepper

For the Sauce:

1 Cup Unflavored/Unsweetened Greek Yogurt

2 Tbsp Olive Oil

2 Tbsp Water

1 Tsp Grated Lemon Zest

1 Tbsp Lemon Juice

1 Tsp Grated Orange Zest

2 Tbsp Orange Juice

¾ Tsp Salt

½ Tsp Honey

Preheat oven to 400 degrees.

Wash salmon fillets in cold water and remove any pin bones that may be present.  Mix all the spices together for the dry rub, mix well, and then use to coat the salmon.  If the skin is on one side of the fillet, only rub spices on the opposite (eating) side.  If you can spice both sides, be aware that to spice both sides may make the fillet too spicy for the sauce.

In an oven-safe skillet, preferably cast iron, preheat the pan on medium-high heat before melting the butter.  Add the olive oil and mix.  Quickly add the fillet, spicy side down (if there’s a skin side) and fry for about 2 minutes.  Carefully flip the fillet and fry for about one minute before placing the whole pan and fish in the oven.  Bake for about 5 minutes, during which time, you can quickly prepare the sauce.

In a small sauté pan, mix all ingredients for the sauce and warm over low heat.  Your goal is not to cook the ingredients, and in fact, because I’m not a chef, I can’t even say that heating to higher temperatures would work.  Heat and mix the sauce for a few minutes until warm to the touch…about 100 degrees.

Remove the fish from the oven, cut to size, and serve with a healthy serving of sauce on each portion.

You may wonder if the combination of citrus and yogurt with a salt and paprika-based dry rub would work well.  And I can tell you that we were thinking the same thing.  The best I can describe the taste is to say that when you take a bite, your first taste is of the citrusy creamy sauce.  You have enough time to enjoy the sauce before the heat and salt of the rub takes over.  Eventually, the mixing of the flavors is complete, as is the eating experience.

Candied Citrus Rinds

This recipe is based on one found in Put ‘em up! by Sherri Brooks Vinton.  The book is filled with many interesting and unique food preservation recipes.  It is currently my go-to book for unique and new recipes of this type.

Ingredients:

Peels from 6 grapefruits (or other citrus)

1 cup water (plus more for boiling rinds)

4 cups sugar (to make a syrup)

1 cup sugar (for dusting)

1 vanilla bean or 1 tsp vanilla extract

Cut the grapefruit, orange, or other citrus rinds into ¼” strips.  Any shape or size of strip is usable, so don’t throw anything away.

In a medium saucepan, add the rinds and enough water to cover them completly.  Bring the rinds to a boil, stir once or twice, and drain the pot.  Refill the pot twice with water, boil, and repeat.  The rinds should go through three complete rinses of water to sufficiently remove the bitterness from the rinds.  Drain the rinds after the final boiling and set aside.

In a medium saucepan, bring 1 cup water to a boil.  Begin adding 4 cups sugar slowly and stir continuously until all the sugar has been added.  As the syrup heats and the sugar dissolves, the syrup will go from a cloudy suspension of sugar to a clear (but bubbly) syrup.  Mmmmm, yum.

Add the vanilla bean (or extract) and the rinds to the syrup.  Boil the mixture with periodic stirring for 1 hour, or until the rinds are translucent.  Do not cover.

Remove the candied rinds from the syrup (but save the syrup!).  Drain in a colander for a few minutes until cooled enough to handle.

Spread the rinds on a drying sheet (using wax paper is a good idea, but optional) and allow to air dry for at least 2 hours.

Once dry, but still somewhat sticky to the touch, shake small batches of the rinds in a Ziploc bag filled with the last 1 cup of sugar.  Store the rinds in a bag or cookie container and enjoy.

As for the remaining syrup: I know sugar is pretty cheap, but you shouldn't let this citrusy syrup go to waste.  You could use the syrup as-is on pancakes and waffles, or as a source of sweetness in your tea.  It also makes a delicious glaze on cakes and pastries.

You might find it inconvenient to sacrifice so many citruses just to make this candy...but that's not the point.  You can easily freeze the rinds over many months as you eat your citrus normally, and then thaw before slicing and boiling.  This is a great way to make the most of the foods you buy in the store.  Think of this as just one more way to recycle and get the most out of your money.

And here’s another idea: don’t go out of your way to sacrifice a boat-load of grapefruits just to harvest their rinds.  For this current batch, I had actually sliced the rinds of various grapefruits over a few months and froze them.  They keep quite well in the freezer and it didn’t seem to significantly affect the taste.  So whenever you eat your grapefruit, just remember to remove all the leftover innards before slicing the rind.