Something Interesting: Wasabi-Maple Salmon

I was recently looking at menus in Astoria at a bunch of different restaurants (I can’t remember which this was from — or even if I was still looking at Astoria restaurants) — it’s all a blur, really.

Anyway, I came across wasabi-maple grilled salmon on one of the menus. Hmmmm, I thought, that’s kind of intriguing. Later, when I tried to find a recipe for it, I found a blog talking about how McCormick was touting wasabi-maple as the hip, new combo for cooks in 2007. After I rolled my eyes and made a few snorting sounds, I decided to go ahead and try it anyway.

This is kind of based on the McCormick recipe I found online, but kind of changed a little because, although powdered ginger and powdered garlic have their place, a wet marinade is not one of those places, imho.

Also, if you are afraid of trying an experiment on a beautiful piece of salmon (I was — I had a big, awesome Chinook fillet), don’t be. The flavor imparted is really very mild and the fish still stands out, as it should.

Wasabi-Maple Grilled Salmon
2 tsp wasabi powder
1 tsp water
1/3 cup maple syrup
2 green onions, sliced
2 tbsp soy sauce
2 cloves garlic, smashed
1-inch piece fresh ginger, peeled
1 tbsp vegetable oil
salt & pepper
1 lb salmon fillet(s)

Mix the water into the wasabi to make a paste. Transfer to a ziplock bag or a big bowl and mix in the maple syrup through the ginger. Add the salmon and let marinade for about an hour or two.

I had a huge piece of salmon so I just marinated it whole, then removed and sliced into two pieces right before grilling. You can also grill the garlic pieces from the marinade.

I also put the leftover marinade in a pan and brought it to a boil, then simmered it and used it as a light glaze on the finished fish.

Heat up your grill pan and oil it liberally. Salt and pepper the salmon and grill until done to your liking. Let it sit for a minute or two on a plate while you finish getting whatever else ready for the meal. In my case, it was some sauteed asparagus in sesame oil with garlic.

Plate everything up and enjoy!

***

Anyone have a good Portland area wedding photographer to recommend? If so, leave a comment and let me know! We met with Urban Photography yesterday (might be a bit too pricey for our budget). Angela Snyder is our first choice so far and we’re meeting with Christina Gilchrist next week (I have a good feeling about her). If we can’t decide between Angela and Christina we have a meeting with Artful Images the following week. Agghhhh!!!