Foil-baked Salmon served with
English Parsley Sauce
An English parsley
sauce has, in many ways, become a forgotten delicacy. It's excellent served
with boiled gammon
or any baked fish or, as shown here, it's supremely
good served as a partner to fresh salmon.
Serves : 4
Ingredients:
4 Salmon Steaks weighing about 6oz / 175g each
A Few Parsley
Stalks
4 Small Bay Leaves
4 Slices Lemon
4
Dessertspoons Dry White Wine
Salt and Freshly
Milled Black Pepper
FOR THE PARSLEY SAUCE:
4 Heaped tbsp Parsley, finely
chopped
15 floz / 425ml Milk
1 Bay Leaf
1 Slice Onion, ¼
inch / 5mm thick
1 Blade Mace
A Few Parsley
Stalks, chopped
10 Whole Black
Peppercorns
¾oz / 20g Plain Flour
1½oz / 40g Butter
1 tbsp Single Cream
1 tsp Lemon Juice
Salt and Freshly
Milled Black Pepper
Instructions:
1.
First take
a sheet of foil large enough to wrap the steaks in, and lay it
over a shallow baking tin.
2.
Wipe the
pieces of salmon
with kitchen paper and place on the foil.
3.
Then place
the parsley stalks,
bay leaf and a
slice of lemon over
each steak and
season with salt and pepper.
4.
Then,
finally, sprinkle the wine over, bring the foil up either side, then pleat it,
fold it over and seal it at the sides.
5.
All this
can be done in advance, but when you need to cook the salmon, pre-heat the
oven to Gas Mark 4 / 350°F / 180°C and bake the salmon on a high-ish oven shelf for 20 minutes exactly.
6.
Then,
before serving the fish,
slip off the skin using a sharp knife to make a cut, and just pull it off all
around.
7.
For the
sauce, place the milk
and the next five ingredients in a saucepan, bring everything slowly up to
simmering point, then pour the mixture into a bowl and leave it aside to get
completely cold.
8.
When
you're ready to make the sauce, strain the milk back into the
saucepan, discarding the flavourings, then add the flour and butter and bring everything
gradually up to simmering point, whisking continuously with a balloon whisk,
until the sauce has thickened.
9.
Then turn
the heat down to its lowest possible setting and let the sauce cook for 5
minutes, stirring from time to time.
10.
When
you're ready to serve the sauce, add the parsley, cream and lemon juice.
11.
Taste and add
seasoning.
12.
Then serve
in a warm jug to pour over the fish.
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