Easy Three-Ingredient Salmon

Every damn time. Whenever I decide that I want to eat a home-cooked, flavor-packed meal but am just too tired (read: lazy) to do much of anything, this salmon hits right.

I serve it with a whole roasted sweet potato with ghee (so easy) and sautéed spinach with garlic, and suddenly you have a better than-restaurant-quality meal. I am one of those people who loves salmon, so this works well for me, but I’ve found that even people who “don’t like fish” are generally thrilled with this dish and are going back for seconds or thirds. Here’s the thing about salmon, it’s really healthy and also really tasty. It is packed with omega-3 fatty acids and an entire spectrum of minerals and vitamins that are hard to get anywhere else. It’s also, of course, a perfect source of protein, so if you love it as much as we do, go ahead and add it to your weekly rotation. It’s perfect any time of year.

Now, onto the cooking method. For a couple of years now, we have been cooking salmon almost exclusively on a cedar plank on the grill. I highly recommend this method if you have access to a gas grill. You can order a pack of cedar planks on amazon, soak them in wine or water for a few hours (I do a combo of both), and then store them in the freezer so you always have one on hand. Separate them with parchment paper so they don't stick together in the freezer. When it’s time to cook, you just take it out and pop it on the hot grill for a couple of minutes per side, then slide your salmon onto the plank, and cook it at about 400 for 20 minutes.

*If you do not have a grill, don’t worry at all, this is really good in the oven, too, and I make it this way whenever my husband isn’t around, just so I can keep all of my cookery contained to the kitchen.

What do you do with this salmon? Anything you want. You can use as mentioned above, add it on the side of a salad, serve it with rice and an avocado/cucumber/herby salad, or save the leftovers as a nice topping for your morning toast with a poached egg and perhaps some arugula and olive oil. It’s going to be great, get excited.

Oh, wait. One thing. Did I mention this whole recipe has three ingredients? I don’t think I did. Now, you could get a little fancy and add some grated ginger and cilantro, but honestly, I almost never do that. I make it just like this and I love it. Ok, I’m getting hungry…

Easy Weeknight Salmon

Serves 4

Ingredients

1.5 lbs of salmon - I prefer Faroe Island. You can use any kind, but if you are using a wild salmon, add some olive oil to your mix

1/3 cup of orange marmalade (can sub apple butter or peach preserves)

1/4 cup of Tamari

Optional:

1 tsp grated ginger

1 tbsp chopped cilantro

Directions

1. Combine marmalade and Tamari in a small bowl and whisk together well.

2. Place salmon in a glass baking dish

3. Coat salmon with marmalade/tamari mixture and make sure it has a nice layer over top. Leave to marinate for a minimum of 30 minutes, and up to 8 hours.

3. When you are ready to cook, heat grill to high or oven to 400 degrees. If using a cedar plank, remove it from the freezer or wine soak. Place the salmon on a baking sheet covered in parchment if baking.

4. For the oven: bake for 20 minutes, then remove, cover with foil, and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

5. For the grill: put your plank directly on the grill for 2 minutes on each side, then slide the salmon onto the plank. Grill at 400 degrees for 20 minutes, then remove, cover with foil, and let rest for 10 minutes before serving.

Enjoy!