Cooking Salmon in olive oil creates a most delicious, succulent texture. You’ll never want your salmon any other way!
This is not a sponsored post — as always I only write about things I love.
I’ve been wine tasting, cheese tasting, chocolate tasting, and now I can add olive oil tasting to the list — thanks to Melissa’s Produce, Laura Bashar, Mary Platis and Geroge Menzelos.
Melissa’s Produce hosted a lovely book signing luncheon for Laura Bashar and Mary Platis’ fantastic new book, Cooking Techniques and Recipes with Olive Oil. In addition to sampling delicious recipes from the book, we were also fortunate enough to taste olive oils from the Arianna Trading Company.
In their book, co-authors and award-winning food bloggers, Laura (below left) and Mary (below right), AKA “Two Extra Virgins,” take us from the history of olive oil, olive oil production and varieties, to cooking techniques and dozens of scrumptious recipes.
The recipes are easy-to-follow and exquisitely photographed. Laura and Mary are also two of my favorite food bloggers – always warm and welcoming while sharing their wealth of culinary knowledge. Laura’s blog is Family Spice and Mary’s is California Greek Girl.
One of my favorite recipes we sampled was Mediterranean Vegetables in Olive Oil (pictured on the book cover above and below).
I could have snacked on this all day!
I’ve always been curious about poaching with olive oil and love that an entire chapter in the book is dedicated to it. This technique is so simple and creates an unbelievably delicious result.
This salmon recipe was my first go at poaching fish in olive oil and I loved it. Laura and Mary’s book has a handful of other wonderful recipes for poaching with olive oil, as well as recipes for braising, marinating, steaming, baking and more.
George Menzelos is the owner and importer of the Arianna Trading Company. Their Organic Raw Unfiltered Extra-Virgin Olive Oil is so delicious! This “liquid gold,” as it’s been called, is traditionally cultivated, harvested, crushed and bottled by a family in the region of Sitia, Crete.
You can learn more about the Arianna Trading Company and their products here.
Cooking Techniques and Recipes with Olive Oil is a very special book to have in your collection. I love it, and think you will too. You can order yours here.
Enjoy!
Photo of Laura and Mary and cookbook cover photo courtesy of Two Extra Virgins, and Photo of Arianna Trading Company’s products courtesy of Arianna Trading Company.
- about 2 cups extra virgin olive oil
- about 6 sprigs fresh thyme
- zest of 1 lemon
- 2 approximately 6-ounce salmon fillets (preferably wild caught)
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- fresh lemon juice
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Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F and adjust a rack to the center.
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Add the oil to a ovenproof pot large enough to submerge the salmon fillets -- so they are not on top of each other.
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Add the thyme and lemon zest to the oil and heat it in the preheated 225 degree F oven until the oil temperature reaches 180 degrees F.
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Season the salmon with salt and pepper and then just for a moment open the oven, slide the rack out, and very carefully add the salmon to the oil. Close the oven and cook just until it's cooked through, about 10 minutes.
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Use a slotted spoon or spatula to remove the salmon from the oil and place the fillets on serving plates. Drizzle the fillets with lemon juice and serve.
Laura @ Family Spice says
I’m so glad you liked the book and I love that we inspired you to try your own creation. That’s what it’s all about! Thank you, Valentina, for supporting us!
valentina says
Thank YOU, Laura. xo
Lizthechef says
These 2 virgins are writing group buddies – and their book totally ROCKS!! Your support is so appreciated, I am certain – it’s a terrific cookbook.
valentina says
Thanks, Liz. Agreed – such an awesome book! 🙂
David says
I have two questions, as I will be making this soon! First, how long did it take to get the oil to 180°F? And second, is there any other use for the oil once you have poached in it? (I hate to see good olive oil going to waste… 🙂
Mary Platis says
Thank you for reviewing our book and attending Melissa’s! Your post is beautiful and I enjoyed reading it – and to answer David. You can use the oil for a dressing or sauce for the item you poached, But, discard it after the day of cooking if using a meat,fish, or chicken.
A tip for poaching: use a ramekin in the middle of the pan to help eliminate using more olive oil.
valentina says
Thank YOU, Mary. I love that ramekin tip! 🙂
David says
I am very excited to try this and thank you, Mary, for the tip. I didn’t think the oil would have any further use but I inured it was worth asking!
valentina says
David, you can only use the oil again the same day — in a sauce, dressing, to sauté, etc. Then, sadly it should be tossed. As for the time to get to the temp to 180 . . . I’d say less than 10 min. (Though, unfortunately I didn’t time that part so I might be off.) I’ll check to see if the book might say. 🙂 And Mary answered this in a comment for you, too.