Saucy salmon

Vic Williams | 28th November 2009

New Zealand leads the world in salmon farming, and the fish we breed in the beautiful Marlborough Sounds is the Pacific King, also known as Chinook salmon.

Pacific Kings are renowned for their firm texture and high oil content. One of our local companies farms more of them than anyone else in the world.

As we know, salmon is full of highly beneficial Omega-3 oil and, therefore, is particularly good for our health. This week, we are partnering it with a sauce based on ginger and coriander. It's a great combination.

4 zucchini, topped and halved lengthways
salt and pepper
4 salmon escalopes or loin pieces (skin on)
1cm piece peeled ginger
1 clove garlic, part-crushed, peeled and chopped
1 handful coriander leaves (about 1 loose cup)
1 handful flatleaf parsley leaves (about 1 loose cup)
half tsp sea salt
quarter tsp cracked black pepper
juice half lime (or less)
half cup extra-virgin olive oil
3 Tbsps pure olive oil

Cross-hatch the flesh side of the zucchini halves with the point of a knife, season and put aside for 30 minutes.  If the salmon has pin-bones (escalopes don't, but loin pieces might), pull them out with tweezers.

Put the ginger, garlic, herbs, sea salt and black pepper in a mortar and grind with a pestle to a paste (the leaves will "melt'' to almost nothing). Transfer to a bowl and add a little lime juice, then extra-virgin olive oil, stirring continuously. Add as much remaining lime juice as you like to achieve a tart, but not-too-acidic, flavour. Season to taste.

Pat the zucchini halves dry with paper towels, brush with oil and cook in a frypan, skin-down for a minute or two, then on the flesh side until golden-brown. Keep warm. Brush salmon with oil and cook, skin side-down, in a frying pan for 4-5 minutes. Season the flesh side, turn over and cook another minute or two, at which stage the fish should be medium-rare.

To serve, place two zucchini halves on each warmed plate, arrange salmon on top and drizzle with the ginger-coriander sauce.

Serves 4

Wine match

It's always good to partner food from a particular region with wine made from that
region's grapes. That makes Marlborough our logical choice of where to find something to sit in the glass beside this dish. The province's most famous style, sauvignon blanc, finds a tenuous link in the herbaceous sauce, and chardonnay also works because its creaminess suits the salmon's oily texture. A great alternative, however, is gewurztraminer. The texture is oily, and the wine has a hint of ginger that finds a friend in the sauce. Hunter's Marlborough Gewurztraminer 2008 has the characters we need. It's just off-dry, super-smooth and delightfully aromatic. Look for it in the low-$20s.