Slow Roasted Salmon With Harissa Food

SLOW ROASTED HARISSA SALMON

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 250°F. Whisk the oil, harissa, garlic, and salt in a small bowl. Pour half of harissa oil into a baking dish that is just big enough to fit the salmon and swirl to coat. Thinly slice half of the lemon and remove any seeds; reserve the other lemon half. Scatter the slices in dish. Place the salmon in the dish, and pour the remaining harissa oil over the top, spreading evenly over the flesh with a spoon. (Prep-ahead option: At this point, the salmon may be covered and refrigerated for several hours.) Roast the salmon for 15 minutes. Remove the salmon from the oven and baste it with the harissa oil pooled in dish. Return it to the oven and continue to cook until the flesh flakes apart when prodded with a fork and is just barely cooked through the center, 10-20 minutes longer. (Tip: lean wild salmon, like sockeye, can cook in as little as 20-25 minutes total, while thicker farm raised fillets will require the longer cooking time. For salmon with a hint of pink in the center, look for an internal temperature of 120°F when taken with a quick read thermometer.) Squeeze the remaining lemon half over the salmon and scatter with some of the optional herbs. (I give the lemon a good squeeze but don't squeeze every last drop. You could garnish with wedges from an additional lemon to please those who like a stronger lemon flavor.) Serve from the baking dish, or for a fancier presentation, cut the salmon into pieces or break it into chunks with a spoon, and then arrange the pieces on a platter along with the lemon slices, drizzling with the harissa oil from the baking dish and scattering the herbs overtop. Any remaining harissa oil is delicious drizzled over roasted, mashed, or baked potatoes, cauliflower, carrots, couscous, rice or another grain of choice.

SLOW-ROASTED SALMON WITH HARISSA

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 275°F. Whisk oil, harissa, and garlic in a medium bowl. Pour half of harissa oil into a 2.5-qt. baking dish and swirl to coat. Thinly slice a lemon half and remove any seeds; scatter slices in dish.
• Season salmon on all sides with salt and place in dish. Pour remaining harissa oil over salmon, spreading evenly over flesh with a pastry brush or spoon. Roast 15 minutes. Remove from oven and baste fish with harissa oil pooled in dish. Return to oven and continue to roast until flesh flakes apart easily with a spoon but is not quite cooked through, 10-20 minutes longer.
• Use spoon to break up salmon into irregular pieces. Arrange salmon and lemon slices on a platter. Drizzle with any harissa oil left in dish, squeeze remaining lemon half over, and scatter some herbs around.

BROWN-BUTTER SALMON WITH LEMON AND HARISSA

Steps:

• Heat oven to 325 degrees. Place salmon in a large baking dish skin-side-down and season with salt and pepper. (Alternatively, use a rimmed baking sheet.)
• Heat butter in a small pot or skillet over medium heat. Cook, whisking occasionally, until butter foams and browns, about 5 minutes. (The whisking will help release the brown butter bits from the bottom of the pot, and those are the bits you want.)
• Add garlic slices, letting them sizzle and brown in the butter for 30 seconds or so, then add 2 tablespoons olive oil to the pot and whisk in harissa. Give it a minute or two to sizzle and toast a bit in the butter mixture. Add 2 tablespoons lemon juice and 2 tablespoons water to the pot, whisking to incorporate.
• Season the brown butter-harissa sauce with salt and pepper and pour over salmon.
• Place in oven and roast until the salmon is just cooked through, but still nicely pink and medium-rare in the center, 12 to 15 minutes for a whole fillet, or 8 to 10 minutes for individual fillets. (If you prefer your fish well done, cook the whole fillet for 15 to 18 minutes, or individual fillets for 12 to 15 minutes.)
• Meanwhile, toss shallot with 2 tablespoons lemon juice in a medium bowl and season with salt and pepper. Add lettuce and dill and toss to coat; drizzle with a bit of olive oil and season with salt and pepper.
• Once salmon is just cooked through, remove from oven. Use a large serving spoon to scoop large chunks of salmon onto a serving platter or individual plates, leaving the skin behind in the baking dish. (No need to worry if you get smaller chunks too, but try to get the largest pieces you can.) Spoon any remaining brown-butter sauce from the pan over the fish and squeeze lemon over the top. Sprinkle with a bit more dill, if you have it. Serve with dilly lettuce alongside, and, if you like, potatoes or toast and aioli.

HARISSA ROAST SALMON WITH LEMON CHICKPEA COUSCOUS

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a large non-stick frying pan, add the onions, fennel, garlic and cumin seeds and fry, stirring frequently, for about 15 mins until the vegetables are soft and golden. Stir in the lemon zest and season. Leave to cool.
• Stir the harissa with the agave or honey. Place a salmon fillet, skinned-side down, on a large sheet of baking parchment and spread with half the harissa mixture. Top evenly with the vegetables, then cover with the other salmon fillet, positioning it so that the thickest end is on top of the thinnest end of the other fillet. Can be made up to this point, covered and chilled the day before.
• Heat oven to 200C/180C fan/gas 6 with a large baking sheet inside. Brush the salmon with the rest of the harissa mixture, then lift (still on the parchment) onto the hot baking sheet and bake for 30 mins. Remove from the oven and check that the fish is cooked all the way through; if not done to your liking, cook 5 mins more and check again.
• To make the couscous, crumble the stock cube into a large bowl and add the harissa, currants and couscous. Meanwhile, put the chickpeas in a bowl with the lemon juice, oil and seasoning. Just before serving, pour 450ml boiling water over the couscous, stir well, then cover with a plate and leave to soak for 5 mins. Add the lemon zest, parsley and mint (if using) to the chickpeas and stir well, then toss through the hot couscous with the flaked almonds. Serve on a big, warm platter with the salmon (the easiest way to transfer the salmon is to lift it still on the parchment, then slide it on top), with lemon wedges on the side. To serve, cut the salmon in slices, or cut thicker slices and halve to make chunky squares.