Vanilla pods add a touch of sweetness to salmon. Auckland chef Nick Honeyman demonstrated how to cure salmon using vanilla and this led to this salad.
Ingredients
| 100 g | Caster sugar |
| 400 g | Boneless salmon fillets, skin off (Main) |
| 150 g | Sea salt |
| 1 | Orange, zest and juice |
| 1 | Vanilla pod |
| 1 to serve | Nashi pear |
| 1 to serve | Green salad, watercress, baby spinach leaves and whitlof |
| 1 to serve | Persimmon |
| 100 ml | Extra virgin olive oil |
| 1 pinch | Salt |
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Directions
- Make a paste of 100g of castor sugar, 150g of plain rock salt, the zest of an orange and its juice.
- Split a vanilla pod and scrape away the seeds, reserving them to use later. Finely chop the pod and mix this into the paste.
- Cover the salmon fillets with the paste, gently rubbing the mix across the flesh. Place the salmon in a bowl and cover. Refrigerate for at least 3 hours.
- Wash the salt off the salmon and dry.
- Sear the salmon fillets in a non stick pan, a few moments of each side.
- Cut the salmon into pieces and arrange on a bed of watercress, baby spinach leaves and whitlof. Add some nashi and persimmon slices for colour and crunch.
- Mix the reserved vanilla bean seeds with 100ml of virgin olive oil and a good pinch of salt. Using a teaspoon, dress the salmon pieces with this beautiful rich oil.
