Salmon Picatta by Charlie Burke Printer-Friendly Recipe Veal Picatta, and Its Less Expensive

Salmon Picatta
By Charlie Burke
Printer-friendly recipe
Veal picatta, and its less expensive substitute chicken picatta, are standards in
many Italian restaurants, and combining olive oil or butter with the acidity of
lemon and wine, along with parsley and capers, results in great flavor.
I have always felt that this preparation would transition perfectly to several
species of fish, and I’d love to try it with monkfish. Unfortunately, I’ve recently
found that monkfish, previously a “junk fish”, abundantly found on both side
of the Atlantic, is now over-fished and threatened. (see this web site for
threatened species:
).
Wild Alaskan salmon are now in fish markets, and local fishermen are catching
wild salmon in the lakes of New England, so try this recipe with fresh spring
salmon. Both are vastly superior to bland farmed salmon which threaten the
environment and wild Atlantic salmon.
Two servings:
12 ounces fresh salmon – ask your fish monger to remove skin
1 cup flour
½ teaspoon cayenne
Kosher or sea salt and freshly ground pepper
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 tablespoons finely chopped shallots
1 tablespoon capers, rinsed
Juice of one small lemon (2 – 2 ½ tablespoons)
½ cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons parsley, finely chopped
Butter as needed
Slice salmon obliquely into thin slices, ¼ - ½ inch thick. Lightly salt and pepper
the fish slices. Add salt, pepper and cayenne to flour to taste. Heat a sauté pan
(preferably non stick) over medium – high heat. When hot, add olive oil and
butter. Dredge several slices of salmon in the flour, shaking off excess so that
salmon is lightly floured. When butter foams, add several slices of salmon,
leaving space between the pieces. Cook until edges are opaque and turn,
cooking until pieces are slightly under done (cut into pieces or push a finger
into fish, removing when still slightly red or when there is slight resistance).
Remove fish slices to a plate and add shallots to sauté pan, shaking pan until
shallots are soft but not browned. Add lemon juice and wine and reduce until
slightly thickened. Taste, and if sauce is too acidic, add small amounts of butter
until acidity is balanced. Stir in parsley and add salmon slices back into sauté
pan until reheated. Taste sauce, correcting sauce with salt and pepper, if
needed.
Serve on heated plates with greens, such as spinach or broccoli rape, and your
choice of starch (here, yesterday’s risotto, fried in olive oil, to make a small
cake).
Try this preparation with your favorite fish – the lemony, acidic sauce goes well
with any seafood. Dry white wine, such as Sauvignon Blanc or France’s Sancerre
will complement this perfectly.