Poached Salmon with Tarragon-Leek Butter Sauce

By LRay

Ingredients

• Salmon
• 2 tablespoons minced fresh dill
• 1/2 cup dry white wine
• 1/2 cup fish stock or clam broth
• 1 carrot, peeled and sliced
• 1 celery stalk with leaves, cut into 4 pieces
• 1 small onion, sliced
• 1 whole salmon (5-8 pounds) cleaned, gutted, and scaled
• Lemon slices, fresh dill and fresh parsley for garnish
• Sauce
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 leek, white part only, washed and sliced
• 3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
• 3 tablespoons dry white wine
• 12 tablespoons Kerrygold Irish butter, cut into tablespoon-sized pieces
• 1 1/2 teaspoons minced fresh tarragon or 1/2 teaspoon dried
• Salt and white pepper to taste

Details

Servings 8
Adapted from kerrygoldusa.com

Preparation

Step 1

To poach the salmon, in a small saucepan, bring the dill, wine, stock or broth, carrot, celery and onion to a boil. Reduce heat to simmer and cook, uncovered, for about 20 minutes.

If using a poacher, add the poaching liquid to it. Place the salmon on a double thickness of cheesecloth, twist the ends to form handles, and place the fish in the hot liquid. Cover the poacher and simmer (do not boil) about 10 minutes for each inch of the thickness of the fish (25-30 minutes for a 5-pound fish).

Without a poacher, preheat the oven to 300º F. Place the salmon on a double thickness of buttered aluminum foil large enough to make a packet to enclose the fish. Pour the poaching liquid over the salmon and fold up the sides of the foil to make a container. Pull up the lengthwise sides and crimp the edges together all around. Bake for 25-30 minutes for a 5-pound fish. Remove from the oven and let the salmon sit in its foil packet for about 20 minutes.

To make the sauce, in a small saucepan, bring the shallots, leek, vinegar and wine to a boil. Reduce heat to medium and cook, uncovered, for about 10 minutes, or until the liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons. Whisk in the butter, 1 tablespoon at a time. Add the tarragon, salt and pepper. Keep warm in a double boiler over hot water, or reheat over gentle heat.

Serve the salmon at room temperature with the sauce. When the top side is eaten, turn the fish over to serve the remaining half.

Serves 8 as a main course; 12 as a starter.