Monday, September 20, 2010

Fresh



I am officially in love with farmer’s markets. Wandering through the produce stands with a cup of coffee in hand, I feel like I’m in my own little world. It is a fantastic world filled not only with the usual strawberries, peaches, tomatoes, and corn, but also with okra, swiss chard, pimientos de padrón, and squash blossoms, which are not typically on my radar. That is the allure of the farmer’s market for me…ingredients that take me out of my comfort zone. So lately, I’ve been coming home from the market with my reusable bags full of things that I don’t typically cook.

Carrots may be a boring standard for some, and I find that I rarely use them as a stand-alone ingredient. Always part of mirepoix, they get chopped up and thrown into soups and stews. So on Saturday morning, as I passed by a pile of vibrant orange baby carrots with the longest green tops, I thought about how lovely they looked, but eventually moved on without buying them. I then talked about them so much that Andy eventually told me to just go and buy them. I did (for only $1.50!), and with the greens brimming out of my bag, left the market a very happy camper.

It’s not often that a side dish is the star of the show, and as good as our salmon was, these roasted carrots were the object of our affection. (And believe me, the salmon was darn good.)

Roasted Carrots and Asian Marinated Salmon with Sriracha Aioli

Carrots:
1 bunch carrots
olive oil
salt and pepper
unsalted butter

On a baking sheet, toss carrots with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast in a 400 degree oven until tender, turning once. Time varies depending on size. (These took 18 minutes.) Top with a few pats of butter after removing from oven.


Salmon: 
2 filets of salmon

Marinade:
2 tablespoons canola oil
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon hoisin sauce
1/2 teaspoon Chinese hot mustard
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated ginger
1 clove garlic, minced
1 green onion, sliced

Mix all ingredients together in a Ziploc bag and add salmon. Let marinate for 30 minutes.

Sriracha Aioli:
1/4 cup mayonaisse
1/2 tablespoon Sriracha sauce
1 teaspoon lemon juice
1 clove garlic, very finely minced
pinch of salt

Mix all ingredients together. Set aside. (Can be made ahead and refrigerated.)

After the salmon has marinated, put it in a glass baking dish and roast in a 400 degree oven for about 10-15 minutes, depending on thickness. (These filets were about 1 inch thick and took 13 minutes.)

Plate the salmon and drizzle it with the aioli. Serve with carrots and rice.



The carrots, as simple as they sound, were just fantastic. Roasting them brings out the sugars and a little bit of a crustiness forms on the outside. Mmmmm.

The salmon has a sweetness from the hoisin sauce and pairs nicely with the heat from the Sriracha aioli. (I know, I know…I cheat on the aioli. I had a bit of a temper tantrum last time I tried to make the homemade version and didn’t want to ruin my evening. I’ll tackle that another time.) Cooked to just barely medium, the filets were moist and practically melted in your mouth.

See…I told you the salmon was good.

20 comments:

  1. Las zanahorias tiene un aspecto fantástico, y la marinada del salmón perfecta

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  2. Wow that looks just beautiful! Can't wait to try the aioli!

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  3. Delicious looking Carrots!

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  4. Yum!! I miss fresh ak salmon from dad's boat. I love farmers markets too and make a weekly pilgrimage. I am about to learn about squash. Will have to try your marinade and aioli.

    Erin
    Www.ekatskitchen.com

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  5. It all sounds fantastic. Great job!

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  6. Fantastic meal...again such great flavors :)

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  7. Farmer's markets inspire me the same way! This week's unusual veggies for me included eggplant, radicchio, torpedo onions and kohlrabi with its greens intact, but I couldn't resist snatching up a bunch of orange and purple carrots too (and about half a dozen other items!).

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  8. I recently went to my local farmers market for the first time. I totally relate to what you are saying about how it feels to walk through, surrounded by so many cool foods! Love the way you prepared the carrots. Sriracha is so addicting--that aoili sounds great, especially on top of the salmon marinated with all those others great flavors!

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  9. I'll take the carrots, you can keep the salmon. Not a seafood kind of gal. Hehe.

    My fiance and I frequent a few farmer's markets here in Vegas and it's so much fun. You actually have a chance to talk to the vendors and enjoy tasty fresh produce. I love going even though I have a bad ankle that makes standing and walking for more than 15-20 minutes a challenge.

    With all my recent adventures at the market (with camera in hand too!), I just can't eat grocery store produce the same way. The fresh fruit and veggies taste sooo much better.

    Now I'm hungry. Time to attack the remaining strawberries in the fridge.

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  10. I feel like you and I are very similar in our cooking and blogging style! I love it! These carrots look amazing and I swear we've made that same salmon recipe! YUM!

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  11. I love going to the farmers market too! Those carrots look amazing...I will have to try these recipes soon. :)

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  12. I have never been a big fan of carrots but I think I might have to try these!

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  13. Looks delicious!!! :-)

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  14. Nice looking dish. The marinade gave the salmon a beautiful glaze. It must be excellent w/ the sriracha aioli.

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  15. This sounds like a fantastic combination! I'm really loving the idea of sriracha aioli--I've just discovered sriracha sauce and have been dying for a good recipe to use it in!

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  16. I love carrots and salmon This is just perfect for me...delicious :D

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  17. I will follow you; love those carrots; funny I make the same ones last week without the better; they come out so sweet.
    Love your Blog!
    Rita

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  18. What you say is true. So often carrots don't get a spotlight. Even as a side item. They're always chopped up. If they're whole it's only as part of a veggie tray with ranch dressing.

    Carrots are on my list of things to cook too. All of the great root veggies are about to become available so I'm excited!

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  19. I made the salmon tonight. We have been using our favorite salmon marinade for years, but this one tops it.
    The flavor of the marinade combined with the sriracha aioli sauce is absolutely delicious.
    Might have to replace the old with the new.

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  20. I've been saving this recipe and finally made it last night. I doubled the sriracha in the aioli to make it even a little hotter. I don't eat much rice, so I put the salmon on a bed of lightly sauteed chard. We loved it!

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