We’ve all been to the chain hotels for weddings, anniversary parties, balls and what not and had the dry stuffed chicken breast and too-pink-on-the-inside-for-me steak. But, whenever the salmon in lemon cream sauce was on the menu, my stomach did a happy dance. It wasn’t perfect but it was always my favorite of the chicken, beef or fish trio. So I set out to do 2 things. 1 – Make it myself, so I can have salmon in lemon cream sauce whenever I want, and 2 – make it better than when it sits on a buffet for an hour before I get to it.
Before we get to the lemon cream sauce, the icing on the cake, let’s talk about the salmon. This is a simply seasoned salmon to accommodate the sauce that it will be drizzled in. While we always want our dishes to be flavorful and delicious, balance is the name of the game. So keep this pan-seared salmon recipe is a staple, it’s a great base for Salmon whether dressed up in lemon cream sauce, drizzled in sweet and sour sauce or enjoyed as-is.
This lemon cream sauce is also a good recipe to keep on hand, its multi-functional. You can use it on chicken, and it’s delicious on whatever else is on your plate, so make a little extra. I definitely wiped my plate clean dragging my potatoes and asparagus through the cream sauce with every bite.
Ingredients:
- Salmon
- Salt
- Granulated Garlic
- Olive Oil
- Butter
- Flour
- Heavy Cream
- 1 lemon, zest and juice
- Black Pepper
- Parsley
DIRECTIONS:
Salmon:
In a large cast-iron skillet, 2 tablespoons of olive oil and 2 tablespoons of butter over medium heat – medium-high heat.
Slice salmon into 2-inch wide strips, pat dry.
Lay each piece of salmon, skin-side-down in a single layer on a cutting board and season with 1-2 pinches of salt and 1/2tsp of granulated garlic.
Place 4-6 pieces of salmon in the skillet, skin-side-up. Allow to saute without moving 5 minutes or until crisp and golden brown.
Once you have reached the crispness you like, flip the salon onto the other side and either continue to cook in the skillet to desired doneness – 5-10 minutes or finish in the oven at 380 degrees for 15-20minutes.
Lemon Cream Sauce:
Start by making a roux. In a small sauce or frying pan, melt ½ stick of butter over medium-low heat.
Once butter is melted, whisk in 3 tablespoons flour. Allow mixture to cook gently as you whisk 1-2 minutes. The mixture will bubble slightly, thicken into a paste.
Stream in 2 cups heavy cream, whisking as you pour to prevent clumps from forming.
Increase heat to medium, to allow sauce to reduce and thicken, but be careful not to allow it to burn.
Add the zest and juice of 1 lemon, 1 teaspoon salt and 1/8 teaspoon of black pepper.
Reduce heat back to medium-low, and whisk to combine ingredients.
Drizzle desired amount of sauce on salmon and garnish with chopped parsley and…
Enjoy!
Mommi Yolande
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