Easy Salmon with Lemon and Capers

By rmulleni

The definition of simple: fresh, skin-on salmon fillets, given a quick marinade with parsley, lemon, and olive oil, then seared to produce crisp skin and moist flesh. A quick pan sauce of shallot, garlic, white wine, butter, and capers finishes it off. Serve with rice pilaf. If you prefer to avoid wine, use water instead.

What to buy: Look for wild or sustainably farmed salmon—check out the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch salmon recommendations and find a market or fishmonger you can trust.

Ingredients

• For the fish:
• 4 (6-ounce) skin-on salmon fillets, pin bones removed
• Kosher salt
• 2 tablespoons finely chopped flat-leaf parsley leaves
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
• For the sauce:
• 2 tablespoons (1/4 stick) unsalted butter
• 1 shallot, minced
• 1 small garlic clove, minced
• 2/3 cup dry white wine
• Finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon
• Juice of 1 lemon
• 2 tablespoons capers, quickly rinsed and coarsely chopped
• Freshly ground black pepper
• Kosher salt, as needed

Details

Servings 4
Preparation time 15mins
Cooking time 70mins
Adapted from fishrecipes.net

Preparation

Step 1

Dry the salmon well with paper towels and season it all over with salt. In a small bowl, stir together the parsley, lemon juice, and 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Coat the salmon fillets with the parsley mixture and set them aside at room temperature for 15 minutes.

Set a large skillet or nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat and let it get hot, about 2 minutes. Add the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and the butter. As soon as the butter is melted, add the salmon fillets, skin-side down. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, pressing down on the fillets 2 or 3 times with a spatula, until the skin is crisp, about 6 minutes.

Flip the salmon and cook until the flesh is done to your liking, about 3 minutes—the exact time will depend on the thickness of the fillets. If necessary, give it 1 or 2 minutes more, but be careful not to overcook.

Transfer the fish to a warmed serving platter and cover loosely with aluminum foil while you make the sauce.
Pour out and discard the fat from the skillet. Increase the heat to medium and add the butter. When the butter melts, add the shallot and garlic and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 2 minutes. Add the wine, lemon zest, and lemon juice and bring to a boil until the sauce thickens slightly, about 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in the capers and season with black pepper. Taste the sauce; the capers should provide enough salt, but season with a bit of salt if necessary.
Pour the sauce over the fish and serve immediately.