Blackened salmon with caponata
Lovely Mediterranean flavours with added warmth from the spicy salmon.
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Serves: 4
Ingredients
...for the caponata...
175ml extra virgin olive oil
2 tbsp plain flour
pinch of salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 large aubergine, trimmed and cut
into small 1cm cubes
2 red onions, peeled and finely chopped
2 courgettes, trimmed and finely diced
2 celery stalks, trimmed and finely diced
450g small ripe plum tomatoes, skinned,
seeded and diced
175g mixed olives, drained and pitted
4 tbsp capers, washed in cold water and drained again
4 tbsp red wine vinegar
1 tbsp soft brown sugar
...for the fish
2 tsp paprika
1½ tsp salt
½ tsp onion powder
½ tsp garlic powder
½ tsp white pepper
½ tsp black pepper
½ tsp dried dill
½ tsp dried oregano
4 Freedom Food labelled salmon fillets
115g butter
lemon slices
Method
For the caponata:
Heat 100ml of the oil in a large frying pan. Season the flour with salt and freshly ground black pepper and use to coat the aubergine pieces. Fry the aubergine in the oil for 5–8 minutes until golden brown and tender. Drain on kitchen paper.
Wipe the frying pan clean, heat the remaining oil and fry the onion for 3 minutes until just soft. Stir in the courgettes and celery and cook for 5 minutes. Stir in the aubergines, tomatoes, olives, capers, vinegar and sugar. Simmer for 10 minutes until all the vegetables are tender. Season the caponata to taste and set aside.
For the fish:
Mix together the paprika, salt, onion powder, garlic powder, white and black pepper and dried oregano in a small bowl. Sprinkle the spice mixture over each fillet until well coated.
Heat half the butter in a heavy based frying pan until very hot, add two of the fish fillets and cook over a medium heat for about 4 minutes on each side. Remove immediately, cover and keep warm. Add the remaining butter to the pan and cook the other fillets. Serve the fish on top of a bed of caponata.
Recipe from the Freedom Food Celebrity Recipe Collection 2011.