Salmon! Yum! Yum! Such a beautiful nutrient-packed fish! I love cooking a salmon filet using a quick high-heat method of baking/broiling on cast iron. It creates such a crusty flavorful exterior while preserving a succulent melt-in-your-mouth flakey inside. And, as far as I’m concerned, savory fatty salmon goes hand and hand with sweet glazes! The salmon cooked here is about 14oz and was combo baked and broiled at high heat for a total of 12 minutes. The outside is superbly crusty and carmalized with the honey glaze while the inside is moist, flaky, and tender.
Now, I totally get salmon and teriyaki. But, I just feel like the teriyaki is distracting a little too much from the star on the plate which is, of course, the salmon. I prefer a light honey-based BBQ-style sauce that is super simple and almost transparent in color, letting that gorgeous salmon color shine through. This simple sauce provides just the right amount of tang and sweetness but at the same time, “salmon” is what you will mostly taste.
All you have to do is put a couple of tablespoons of honey in a tiny saucepan. Gently heat it up until loose. Add some butter, white wine vinegar, salt, pepper, and garlic powder. Whisk in a dab or two of dijon mustard. Let simmer for a couple of minutes and shut off the heat. Spoon over salmon just prior to baking and then right after broiling (just before serving) spoon over sauce once more.
A side of thoroughly baked sweet potatoes with some butter and mint leaf fragrance is a great accompaniment to a salmon dish done this way.
As far as which wine to pair this meal with? I went with a Finger Lakes 2020 Semi-Dry Riesling by Hermann J. Wiemer Vineyards. I have been pleased with my pairings so far. But, this one is truly a match made in heaven.
This off-dry riesling goes so well with every nuance of this meal! The sweetness of this fruit-forward Riesling marries flawlessly with the tangy honey glaze on the salmon and the sweetness of the potatoes. Classic Finger Lakes acidity and minerality dissolve the palate nicely regarding the charred fatty salmon along with the buttery sweet potatoes. Bellisimo!
Simply delicious!
Michael Ruglio 