Chagigah Kitchen: Berry Salmon

Hello, Chagigah listeners! If you’re anything like me, you need a break from the heavy main courses that are often a staple of recipe blogs — what if you’re in the mood for something light, summery, and kosher? We’ve got a recipe that fits the bill for all three this week in the form of Berry Salmon as discovered on easyjewishrecipes.com; not only is it quick to prepare with few ingredients, but it’s the perfect antidote to the roasts and heavier meats that are going to weigh you down. Enjoy, and remember to tune into Chagigah every Sunday from 8AM-11AM with Mark Grossman and let us know what you think of our recipes at chagigah@wers.org. Eat on!

Berry Salmon

Berry Salmon is a beautiful fish recipe that features a mixture of nutritious berries served over salmon steaks. In the spring and summer, fresh berries are plentiful, sweet, and very affordable. It is worth noting that you can substitute halibut or another “meaty” fish for the salmon. You may even make the fruit sauce to serve over boneless chicken breasts. The sauce can be prepared ahead of serving time reserving fresh berries as indicated below.

Ingredients:
• 3 cups berries (one type or mix blackberries, blueberries, raspberries)
• 1/4 cup cranberry or pomegranate juice
• 1/4 cup brown sugar
• 4 salmon fillets or steaks
• Salt and pepper, to taste
• Olive oil, to drizzle over fish

Directions:
At a medium temperature, simmer 1 1/2 cups of berries in saucepan together with cranberry or pomegranate juice for five minutes. Crush berries with fork, masher, or back of large spoon and continue to simmer untiljuices are released. Remove from saucepan and strain out juice. Return strained berry juice to saucepan and simmer with brown sugar until mixture reduces. It should thicken up and become syrupy, reducing by about a third. Lower heat. Preheat broiler and place rack a few inches away from heat source. Line a baking sheet with foil and coat with cooking spray. Season salmon with salt, pepper and drizzle a bit of olive oil over top. Broil salmon 5-6 minutes per side,until fish flakes easily and is no longer pink in the middle. While salmon broils, place remaining 1 1/2 cup of berries into berry syrup and warm up for a minute or two. Drizzle berry sauce over cooked salmon and serve.

Note: You may replace some of the juice with a tablespoon or two of your favorite vinegar or wine for added flavor.

By Jamie Loftus

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