Butter poached salmon with lobster sauce, chickpeas and coriander
A luxurious dish to impress a loved one with. Perfect for Valentine’s perhaps?
Ingredients
For the salmon
- 250g/9oz unsalted butter, cubed
- 300g/10½oz piece best quality farmed salmon, skin on, pin boned
- 1 large cooked lobster claw, shell removed and reserved
For the lobster sauce
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 2 lobster shells
- 1 onion, finely chopped
- 1 carrot, peeled and finely choped
- 3 sticks celery, finely chopped
- 1 bay leaf
- 2 sprigs thyme
- 2 sprigs tarragon
- 1 garlic clove, finely chopped
- ½ fennel bulb, finely chopped
- 150ml/5fl oz vermouth
- 1–2 tbsp tomato purée
- 400g tin chopped tomatoes
- 2 star anise
- 1 tbsp coriander seeds
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the chickpeas and coriander
- 400g tin chickpeas
- 1 tsp ground cumin
- 1 tsp ground coriander
- 2 garlic cloves, crushed
- 1 banana shallot, chopped
- 3 tbsp fresh coriander and flat parsley, chopped
- 1 lemon, juice only
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
To make the poached salmon, bring 2 tablespoons of water to the boil in a saucepan and slowly whisk in the butter, being careful not to split it. Add the salmon to the pan, reduce the heat to low and poach for 6–8 minutes. Add the lobster claw and cook for a further 2 minutes. Remove the salmon and the lobster claw and set aside.
To make the lobster sauce, heat the olive oil in a medium sauté pan and cook the shells and vegetables together for 20 minutes. Add the vermouth and reduce the volume of the liquid by half, then add the tomato purée, chopped tomatoes, star anise and coriander seeds. Simmer for 10 minutes, add enough water to just cover the shells and vegetables and then simmer for 1 hour.
Crush shells and vegetables, then strain the broth into a bowl, discarding the shells and vegetables. Pour the broth back into the pan and reduce until you have a thick sauce. Season with salt and pepper.
Mix the chickpeas and coriander ingredients together in a bowl and season with salt and pepper.
To serve, spoon some of the marinated chickpeas into a serving bowl, add the hot lobster stock and top with the salmon and the claw.
