Cookbook Challenge: Mustard and Parsley Crusted Salmon

I was very excited to try today's Cookbook Challenge recipe because it comes from one of my favorite television chefs. I actually have two of Lorraine Pascale's books but, until today, I had focused primarily on her party foods. Since those have always been a hit in the past, I had high hopes for this salmon recipe. 

Home Cooking Made Easy

By Lorraine Pascale

Harper Collins, 2011

As I mentioned in my coconut prawn curry post, I have been trying to increase my familiarity with seafood dishes so this recipe seemed like a relatively simple way to continue that trend. While I haven't been the biggest salmon fan in the past, I think the cooked version is starting to grow on me. This recipe certainly helped to improve my opinion since it was so easy and tasty! 

This recipe essentially has two parts: making the topping and then cooking the fish. Both of these stages take only a few minutes though so this could easily be used as a weeknight dinner. I hit a slight snag since I forgot to take the butter out of the fridge in advance so struggled a bit to incorporate it into the other ingredients. However, properly softened butter would probably have meant an even quicker prep time. 

The only strange part was that the recipe did not seem to include a baking temperature. I set my oven to 200 degrees celsius since that's my most commonly used temperature and everything turned out fine so I've included it in the recipe below. 

I have to admit, I was pretty pleased with the final result! In the past when I've tried to cook salmon, I definitely overdid it and ended up with fairly unappetizing results. However, I think ten minutes was the prefect length of time in the oven for my little fillets. The brown sugar was fairly subtle but definitely added a nice element of sweetness to balance out the Dijon mustard. When serving, I used the zested limes as added garnish and thought the lime juice also added a nice dash of flavor. Although I used salmon, you could also use trout or whatever type of fish you prefer. 

I served the salmon with a simple tomato salad and some broccoli and onion that I had sautéed in sesame oil. As a result, the final dish felt like a very healthy and light summer dinner! Finally, this recipe was originally for four people so I have cut the quantities in half below since I only had two salmon fillets. 

Prep Time: 5 min

Cook Time: 10 min

Serves: 2

Ingredient: 

50g dried breadcrumbs
1 tbsp soft light brown sugar
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
knob of butter
Zest of 2 limes
1 bunch of fresh parsley, finely chopped
2 Salmon fillets
Salt and Pepper

Method: 

Preheat the oven to 200C.

In a small bowl, mix the breadcrumbs, light brown sugar, Dijon mustard, butter, lime zest and parsley. The mixture should form a paste.

Spread evenly onto the tops of the salmon fillets and then place them onto a baking tray. Bake for 10 minutes or until your fish is cooked to your liking. Enjoy!