Seasonal Eating: Parchment Baked Salmon with Lemon and Dill

Sunday, April 8, 2018

Parchment Baked Salmon with Lemon and Dill

Recipe by Robin

At last, fresh dill is available in the market again. Not that it’s exactly in season here in Santa Cruz in April. However, its annual reappearance on shelves inspired a way to use the fresh frozen Alaskan salmon that my colleague’s kids caught and gifted to me last season. This recipe requires little prep time, minimal ingredients, and just a little finesse with the parchment. Key to its success are very fresh (or flash frozen and thawed) wild salmon and a bunch of fresh dill. Simple is good.

Served with Asian Slaw

Serve this springtime recipe with a fresh coleslaw, such as Marge’s (Mom’s) Coleslaw or my Asian Slaw. Or, if the weather calls for warm foods, try cooked carrots or winter squash, along with steamed chard or cooked collards. Or combine kabocha squash with collards, with or without bacon, in baked winter squash with greens. For the latter, bake he kabocha and greens at 350 degrees F first, then raise the oven temp to 375. Cover the squash and greens dish to keep it warm for the 15 minutes that the salmon cooks. For leftovers, see my tips for reheating salmon at the end of the recipe.

Happy early spring to all!

Reheated salmon served with lemon and dill garnish

Reheated Using Method Below

Parchment Baked Salmon with Lemon and Dill

serves 6

Note: you may alter this recipe to serve 4 by substituting a 1 lb. salmon fillet. No need to alter the other ingredient amounts.

1½ lbs. fresh salmon fillet

1/3 cup Meyer lemon juice

1/3 cup melted butter

¼ tsp. salt

3 tbsp. finely chopped dill fronds

Preheat oven to 375 degrees F. Locate a baking pan or rimmed baking sheet that will fit the whole salmon fillet. Tear off enough parchment to wrap the fish. For longer fillets, you might need two sheets, one below the fish and one on top. Place the fish on the center of the parchment, and the parchment on the pan or sheet.

Use an immersion blender to make the sauce. Add lemon juice to blending cup and turn on blender. Slowly add melted butter in a small stream. Scrape out butter from measuring cup to blending cup and quickly buzz mixture once more. Add chopped dill and buzz quickly a couple of times till dill is fine but not pulverized.

Make sure that parchment edges are above the level of the baking sheet or pan. Pour sauce over fish. Wrap parchment by matching up the long edges and folding over and creasing several times. For longer fillets, place the second sheet of parchment on top of the sauced fish, and fold up each of the long ends. Then fold up each end, creasing it. It doesn’t have to look perfect, just keep the sauce and moisture inside.

Bake for 15 – 20 minutes at 375 degrees F. Remove from oven, unwrap, and transfer to serving dish. Spoon sauce over fish—and/or pour extra sauce into a small bowl and serve with fish. If there are leftovers, store the fish and the sauce separately.

To Reheat: Preheat oven to 275 degrees F. Gently microwave the sauce till butter is melted, using 10-second intervals. Place salmon on parchment as before. Spoon sauce over salmon. Wrap in parchment as before (this will be easier due the reduced quantity of fish). Bake for about 15 minutes, till heated through.