It has been a long while since I stepped into my beloved kitchen. How long you ask? Well, let me put it this way: there is a thin layer of dust sitting comfortably on top of the frying pan, that's how long it was. Maybe it was the movie Julie & Julia that sparked my interest in cooking again but it was Mochachocolata Rita's recent entry on Pan Fried Salmon with Korean Mushroom and Japanese Creamy Sesame Dressing that inspired me to cook tonight's dish. ThanQ Mochachocolata Rita! I followed her recipe and added my own little twist to it. Well, not much of a twist because I actually took away some steps from the recipe because I am lazy, I am just too lazy. So instead, I prepared the Pan Fried Salmon with Japanese Mushroom and Japanese Creamy Sesame Dressing with many ready to use spices.
Adopted Recipe
- olive oil
- 2 pieces of salmon fillet
- 1 pack of Japanese mushrooms
- Japanese creamy sesame dressing
- McCormick ready-to-use Garlic Powder, Sea Salt, Black Pepper and Parsley Flakes (yes, all ready-to-use spices, woohoo! .... and why sea salt? because I only have that at home)
- Chocolates (alright, they do not really belong here but hey, they are good for dessert and look how happy the M&M figure is)
(1) Since my lazy self did not use fresh garlic and shallot as instructed by the recipe I have to create my own ways to do it. Cut the bottom of the mushroom, clean them and dry them with paper towels. Put some olive oil into the pan and put the mushroom in after a min or so. Sprinkle some garlic powder, salt + pepper and saute it for a bit. Add in the Japanese creamy sesame dressing and continue to saute it for another 2 minutes at med heat. Set aside when done.
(2) While waiting for the mushroom to be done, I gently massaged the salmon with salt + pepper and some olive oil as well.
(3) I now realized why my salmon fillet did not turn brownish, it is because I put some more olive oil into the pan as well! I should have just heated the frying pan up and let me olive oil I rubbed onto the salmon do its own trick .... argh ... and the salmon broke off into little pieces! At least I am learning :) I should have read the instruction more carefully! Anyhow, I let it cook for 2 - 3 mins on one side and flip it over VERY CAREFULLY because the salmon started to fall apart and the skins were breaking into pieces. :( ... how can I solve this problem???
(4) Sprinkle some parsley flakes when plating. Where did the Japanese soba noodles and salad came from? Well, ready to eat items from the supermarket of course ... ^^
Woohoo I did it!! Thank you Mochachocolata Rita for the inspiration! How does it taste? Wonderful of course! So when will be my next venture into the kitchen? Perhaps in a month's time (or longer) ... ... ...
(2) While waiting for the mushroom to be done, I gently massaged the salmon with salt + pepper and some olive oil as well.
(3) I now realized why my salmon fillet did not turn brownish, it is because I put some more olive oil into the pan as well! I should have just heated the frying pan up and let me olive oil I rubbed onto the salmon do its own trick .... argh ... and the salmon broke off into little pieces! At least I am learning :) I should have read the instruction more carefully! Anyhow, I let it cook for 2 - 3 mins on one side and flip it over VERY CAREFULLY because the salmon started to fall apart and the skins were breaking into pieces. :( ... how can I solve this problem???
(4) Sprinkle some parsley flakes when plating. Where did the Japanese soba noodles and salad came from? Well, ready to eat items from the supermarket of course ... ^^
Woohoo I did it!! Thank you Mochachocolata Rita for the inspiration! How does it taste? Wonderful of course! So when will be my next venture into the kitchen? Perhaps in a month's time (or longer) ... ... ...
10 comments:
hey...well done! the salmon looks super moist...so it's ok if they break. that's the beauty of home cooking :D
you placed the salmon skin down on the pan, right? next time, wait until the skin turns crisp before flipping
hang on...the structure of this fillet...it seems challenging to place and keep the skin down. solution = get bigger, thicker fillet :D
wow J, congratulations!! :) and i see you went thru all that trouble of plating, too! no eating off the pan like i do? haha! i hope to see more of these home cooked meals in here. i'm sure your mom will agree. right, auntie? :P
salmon looks good, btw. i should try out this recipe, too. i've always been a big fan of japanese sesame dressing.
@Mochachocolata: it was a bit dry too because I was naughty and went to watch TV while the fish was in the pan. There was a bigger and thicker salmon steak at the Supermarket but it big enough for 2 meals.
Next time I need to wait til the skin turn crisp first before flipping, I lost track of time while watching TV, thought I overcooked it already ... lolz
I love eating salmon, especially if the skin gets very crispy. I'm lazy and normally oven bake/ grill my salmon instead of pan-frying.
Is the Japanese sesame dressing the same as the one that we normally find in the local supermarkets?
@cheeky angel: yeah, I love salmon too and baking it with garlic would be a wonderful dish anytime!
Re dressing, yep, I got mine from Jusco and I think there are a variety of different kinds you can use and should have the same effect as well. Make sure it is the dressing and not the sauce :)
Larousse seems to suggest always using butter to fry salmon rather than olive oil (I tend to agree - that olive oil is too strong a flavour for this) and dusting the steaks lightly with seasoned flour (to get them to brown well) before frying them very quickly in very hot butter.
Personally I find salmon oily enough as is without any additional fat, so I prefer it like cheeky angel: grilled or baked. But I'm far too lazy to do it myself, particularly salmon en croute, which is one of my favourite preparations. (Apart from Balik Salmon served with caviar and the trimmings, of course)
@Smogsblog: I reckon that salmon is rather oily by itself and it will actually produce some oil while being pan-fried, I should have just used less olive oil to rub it or perhaps I should have use butter instead. :) I gotta try the butter method for sure, as Julia Child said "With enough butter, anything is good."
o o o I am actually very interested in trying out the "salmon en croute" but it seems very complicated indeed (for an amateur like me of course). Perhaps I can try it as a Christmas cooking project of mine!
Man, Nice Effort !!
Like the Soba noodles and Salad sides idea too :)
Hmm...looks good!
For such a thin slice of salmon fillet, You can try frying it for 2 min, flip, and then fry for another min. That should be enough.
I never use any shop bought dressing, but then, I am really very serious about cooking.
Next week you should have more cooking ideas as there are plenty of cookbooks and magazine at my place. So you should not wait for another month to try cooking again!
@Babedolphin: Plating is fun! lolz
@Jodi: I will practice more with the flipping!
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