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Sous Vide Salmon w_Herbed Crème Fraîche
More of Vrghr's "Kitchen Experiments" for the Labor Day weekend.
Wuff treated a good friend to a "full on experimental meal" featuring:
- Sous Vide Salmon, brined in honey and seasoned salt, and poached in garlic infused and extra-virgin olive oils, seasoned with Marjoram and Dill and seared for crispy skin
- Arranged on a bed of stock-enhanced Pearled Barley with Currents and Cashews
- Topped with Herbed Crème Fraîche with more fresh Dill and Marjoram and a bit of lime
- Sided with thin-sliced English (Hot houses) Cucumbers in Sweet Vidalia Onion dressing, with home-made "quick pickled" sweet onion strands
Firsts for wuff include the quick pickled onions, herbed Crème Fraîche, olive oil poached and seared salmon, and the pearled barley with currents and cashews.
Results: The fish was tender, silky, and very juicy, just starting to flake nicely with a crispy crunchy skin, and delicate flavors throughout from the herbs and olive oil. The Crème Fraîche was spectacular! Vrghr wanted to eat it right out of the bowl! Lightly soured, bright with citrus, and exploding with herbed flavor with just the right touch of salt to complement the salmon. Crunchy thin cucumber coated in sweet dressing paired with tangy, sharp, vinegar and spices with good onion flavor, but not overpoweringly sharp and prominent onions. The Barley was nutty, moist, a nice texture, with tiny hints of fruit and a savory base from the chicken stock.
Vrghr would have paid REALLY good money to eat this in a restaurant!
Dry-brining the Salmon in honey and seasoned (Omnivore) salt caused the fish to keep it's color and texture, kept the whitish albumen from seeping out when searing, and added enough salt and sweetness that no extra salt was needed on the plate. The olive oil and herbs in the sous vide pouch nicely permeated the fish without overpowering the salmon's own delicious flavors.
Running the water bath at 117 degrees for 45 minutes meant fish perfect for this wuff's tastes; just flaking, but still a lot of moisture, tender, and silky. A shockingly hot seer using Avocado oil, 2 minutes on the skin and ~ 40 seconds on the flesh side, brought a nice crispy skin and lovely color to the fish, without altering the perfectly cooked interior.
Vrghr will post the recipes for the Crème Fraîche and Salmon, then add the Pickled Onions and Pearled Barley "real soon".
Ingredients:
2 each 6 oz Salmon Fillets, skin on, pin-bones removed
~2 tsp Honey
~2 tsp Seasoned (Omnivore) Salt
1 Tbs Garlic Infused Olive Oil
1 Tbs high quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 sprig Fresh Dill
4 sprigs fresh Marjoram
2 Tbs Avocado Oil (for searing)
For the Herbed Crème Fraîche
1 container (6 oz) Crème Fraîche
3 sprigs Fresh Dill
6 sprigs Fresh Marjoram
2 tsp Lime Juice
~1/2 tsp seasoned (Omnivore) Salt
Directions:
Prepare the Crème Fraîche
Remove the stems from the Dill and Marjoram. Finely chop/mince the leaves. In a small container, mix together the Crème Fraîche, herbs, and lime juice. Cover, and refrigerate at least an hour for the flavors to blend.
Dry Brine the Salmon
Smear the flesh side of the fish with about 1 tsp each of fresh honey. Sprinkle the seasoned salt over the honey, making sure it gets on the edges of the fish. Don't worry about the skin side.
Carefully place the fish into a zip-top bag and refrigerate for 15-25 minutes
Sous Vide the Salmon
Set your Sous Vide for 117 degrees F.
Remove the fish from the zip-top bag. Rinse out the bag and rinse off the fish. Pat the bag and fish dry.
Add the fish back to the bag. Add the two olive oils. Add the sprigs of fresh herbs.
Seal up most of the top, but not all. Carefully immerse the bag into the sous vide water, letting the water force the air out of the bag and collapsing it against the fish. Seal up the last of the bag before the water gets in.
Cook in the water for at least 45 minutes. NOTE: Times are dependent on the mass and thickness of the meat. Very thick fillets may take an hour. Thinner may be done in a half hour. However, because it is sous vide, you can leave the fish in the bath for a full hour or more without changing the texture. 15 minutes beyond an hour is about as long as wuff would go though, or the fish might begin to get mushy.
Sear the Salmon
Remove the fish from the water bath. CAREFULLY (it will be very tender) remove the fish from the pouch. Rinse it off and pat it dry with paper towels. Discard the bag and contents.
In a medium, heavy skillet over high heat, heat 2 TBS of Avocado Oil (high smoke point) until it is shimmering and almost smoking.
CAUTION: Carefully place the salmon fillets skin-side down into the pan. They WILL snap and spit!!
Swirl the pan a bit, if needed to get the oil under all the nooks and crannies.
Reduce heat to just keep the oil from smoking. Continue to sear for a full 2 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and flip the fish over, flesh side down.
Plate
Add a small bed of the Pearled Barley to an oven-warmed sturdy plate. Place the fish, skin side down, at the edge of the barley. Add the cucumber on the side and top with some of the pickled onions.
JUST BEFORE SERVING, add the herbed Crème Fraîche atop the fish, Serve IMMEDIATELY! (The warm fish will melt the Crème Fraîche into a puddle if you put it on too early before serving)
Devour!!
Wuff treated a good friend to a "full on experimental meal" featuring:
- Sous Vide Salmon, brined in honey and seasoned salt, and poached in garlic infused and extra-virgin olive oils, seasoned with Marjoram and Dill and seared for crispy skin
- Arranged on a bed of stock-enhanced Pearled Barley with Currents and Cashews
- Topped with Herbed Crème Fraîche with more fresh Dill and Marjoram and a bit of lime
- Sided with thin-sliced English (Hot houses) Cucumbers in Sweet Vidalia Onion dressing, with home-made "quick pickled" sweet onion strands
Firsts for wuff include the quick pickled onions, herbed Crème Fraîche, olive oil poached and seared salmon, and the pearled barley with currents and cashews.
Results: The fish was tender, silky, and very juicy, just starting to flake nicely with a crispy crunchy skin, and delicate flavors throughout from the herbs and olive oil. The Crème Fraîche was spectacular! Vrghr wanted to eat it right out of the bowl! Lightly soured, bright with citrus, and exploding with herbed flavor with just the right touch of salt to complement the salmon. Crunchy thin cucumber coated in sweet dressing paired with tangy, sharp, vinegar and spices with good onion flavor, but not overpoweringly sharp and prominent onions. The Barley was nutty, moist, a nice texture, with tiny hints of fruit and a savory base from the chicken stock.
Vrghr would have paid REALLY good money to eat this in a restaurant!
Dry-brining the Salmon in honey and seasoned (Omnivore) salt caused the fish to keep it's color and texture, kept the whitish albumen from seeping out when searing, and added enough salt and sweetness that no extra salt was needed on the plate. The olive oil and herbs in the sous vide pouch nicely permeated the fish without overpowering the salmon's own delicious flavors.
Running the water bath at 117 degrees for 45 minutes meant fish perfect for this wuff's tastes; just flaking, but still a lot of moisture, tender, and silky. A shockingly hot seer using Avocado oil, 2 minutes on the skin and ~ 40 seconds on the flesh side, brought a nice crispy skin and lovely color to the fish, without altering the perfectly cooked interior.
Vrghr will post the recipes for the Crème Fraîche and Salmon, then add the Pickled Onions and Pearled Barley "real soon".
Ingredients:
2 each 6 oz Salmon Fillets, skin on, pin-bones removed
~2 tsp Honey
~2 tsp Seasoned (Omnivore) Salt
1 Tbs Garlic Infused Olive Oil
1 Tbs high quality Extra Virgin Olive Oil
1 sprig Fresh Dill
4 sprigs fresh Marjoram
2 Tbs Avocado Oil (for searing)
For the Herbed Crème Fraîche
1 container (6 oz) Crème Fraîche
3 sprigs Fresh Dill
6 sprigs Fresh Marjoram
2 tsp Lime Juice
~1/2 tsp seasoned (Omnivore) Salt
Directions:
Prepare the Crème Fraîche
Remove the stems from the Dill and Marjoram. Finely chop/mince the leaves. In a small container, mix together the Crème Fraîche, herbs, and lime juice. Cover, and refrigerate at least an hour for the flavors to blend.
Dry Brine the Salmon
Smear the flesh side of the fish with about 1 tsp each of fresh honey. Sprinkle the seasoned salt over the honey, making sure it gets on the edges of the fish. Don't worry about the skin side.
Carefully place the fish into a zip-top bag and refrigerate for 15-25 minutes
Sous Vide the Salmon
Set your Sous Vide for 117 degrees F.
Remove the fish from the zip-top bag. Rinse out the bag and rinse off the fish. Pat the bag and fish dry.
Add the fish back to the bag. Add the two olive oils. Add the sprigs of fresh herbs.
Seal up most of the top, but not all. Carefully immerse the bag into the sous vide water, letting the water force the air out of the bag and collapsing it against the fish. Seal up the last of the bag before the water gets in.
Cook in the water for at least 45 minutes. NOTE: Times are dependent on the mass and thickness of the meat. Very thick fillets may take an hour. Thinner may be done in a half hour. However, because it is sous vide, you can leave the fish in the bath for a full hour or more without changing the texture. 15 minutes beyond an hour is about as long as wuff would go though, or the fish might begin to get mushy.
Sear the Salmon
Remove the fish from the water bath. CAREFULLY (it will be very tender) remove the fish from the pouch. Rinse it off and pat it dry with paper towels. Discard the bag and contents.
In a medium, heavy skillet over high heat, heat 2 TBS of Avocado Oil (high smoke point) until it is shimmering and almost smoking.
CAUTION: Carefully place the salmon fillets skin-side down into the pan. They WILL snap and spit!!
Swirl the pan a bit, if needed to get the oil under all the nooks and crannies.
Reduce heat to just keep the oil from smoking. Continue to sear for a full 2 minutes.
Remove the pan from the heat and flip the fish over, flesh side down.
Plate
Add a small bed of the Pearled Barley to an oven-warmed sturdy plate. Place the fish, skin side down, at the edge of the barley. Add the cucumber on the side and top with some of the pickled onions.
JUST BEFORE SERVING, add the herbed Crème Fraîche atop the fish, Serve IMMEDIATELY! (The warm fish will melt the Crème Fraîche into a puddle if you put it on too early before serving)
Devour!!
Category Other / Tutorials
Species Unspecified / Any
Size 1280 x 814px
File Size 296 kB
*nods* That "sear and flip" method is one that Vrghr used to employ, before the wuffy discovered the sous vide. It creates a lovely and delectable result, when done properly.
But there is a lot of nuance involved, which means a lot of ways a dish can go wrong if the cook doesn't stay right on top of it: The thickness of the fish, and the freshness. The length and amount of the brining before hand and it's affect on the flesh. The type of fish itself. The heat and emissivity of the pan. All the little things that can change a fantastic meal to one that is drier than desired, or a bit too gelatinous.
But the sous vide eliminates nearly all of that. The interior temperature of the fish comes to EXACTLY where you want it. And you can tailor it in individual degrees to the type of fish and its tolerance and characteristics, from a more meaty swordfish steak, to a more delicate tilapia. Then all you need to do is apply the amount of sear appropriate to the skin and success is much more easy to achieve.
Of course, the sous vide isn't for every occasion! A lovely deep fried catfish, for example, breaded in a crunchy crust, or some wonderfully battered fish (and chips). You want to leave the sous vide on the shelf for those!
But it's certainly a technique Vrghr encourages others to explore! And for those just getting into it, especially for relatively quick cooking items like veggies and fish, which can be done in a matter of minutes, there's no need to buy a dedicated immersion heater. A good 'instant read" thermometer and a vessel with enough capacity and mass to make temperature changes slow and easy to control, like a crock pot or a big stock pot and a stove with good control of the heat, and you can test out the results for yourself and see if you want to make the expenditure of a dedicated Sous Vide appliance when you have the funds!
One of the VERY nice things about the "in the bag" trick, and one that only the Sous Vide can do, is poaching the fish in olive oil, and doing it cheaply! Poaching in oil on a stove top needs a lot of oil, and that gets flavored from the fish. So you can't use it again unless it's to poach more of the same fish. And since olive oil isn't cheap, you really don't want to pour out a quart or so every time you try that method. But you only need a few tablespoons in the Sous Vide bag, and you can enjoy the same results for FAR less cost!
Hope you can give it a try one day. Wuff's sure you'll see and enjoy the advantages for those dishes where it makes sense.
But there is a lot of nuance involved, which means a lot of ways a dish can go wrong if the cook doesn't stay right on top of it: The thickness of the fish, and the freshness. The length and amount of the brining before hand and it's affect on the flesh. The type of fish itself. The heat and emissivity of the pan. All the little things that can change a fantastic meal to one that is drier than desired, or a bit too gelatinous.
But the sous vide eliminates nearly all of that. The interior temperature of the fish comes to EXACTLY where you want it. And you can tailor it in individual degrees to the type of fish and its tolerance and characteristics, from a more meaty swordfish steak, to a more delicate tilapia. Then all you need to do is apply the amount of sear appropriate to the skin and success is much more easy to achieve.
Of course, the sous vide isn't for every occasion! A lovely deep fried catfish, for example, breaded in a crunchy crust, or some wonderfully battered fish (and chips). You want to leave the sous vide on the shelf for those!
But it's certainly a technique Vrghr encourages others to explore! And for those just getting into it, especially for relatively quick cooking items like veggies and fish, which can be done in a matter of minutes, there's no need to buy a dedicated immersion heater. A good 'instant read" thermometer and a vessel with enough capacity and mass to make temperature changes slow and easy to control, like a crock pot or a big stock pot and a stove with good control of the heat, and you can test out the results for yourself and see if you want to make the expenditure of a dedicated Sous Vide appliance when you have the funds!
One of the VERY nice things about the "in the bag" trick, and one that only the Sous Vide can do, is poaching the fish in olive oil, and doing it cheaply! Poaching in oil on a stove top needs a lot of oil, and that gets flavored from the fish. So you can't use it again unless it's to poach more of the same fish. And since olive oil isn't cheap, you really don't want to pour out a quart or so every time you try that method. But you only need a few tablespoons in the Sous Vide bag, and you can enjoy the same results for FAR less cost!
Hope you can give it a try one day. Wuff's sure you'll see and enjoy the advantages for those dishes where it makes sense.
Heya ^^ Ghosty here..
I'll certainly give it a try one day as I like the idea. Just haven't tried it out yet, as I found the sear and flip methode very easy... if you have a filet that still has the skin attached.
And I maybe have to figure out how to control the temperature.. but that's pretty doable :3
Thanks for the inspiration.
And I agree about the olive oil.
I usually use a good extra vergine oil my parents (or their friends) buy directly in Italy.. and it's so tasty and mild that you can just pour it onto a spoon and eat.
it's not cheap, but it is so worth it.
I'll certainly give it a try one day as I like the idea. Just haven't tried it out yet, as I found the sear and flip methode very easy... if you have a filet that still has the skin attached.
And I maybe have to figure out how to control the temperature.. but that's pretty doable :3
Thanks for the inspiration.
And I agree about the olive oil.
I usually use a good extra vergine oil my parents (or their friends) buy directly in Italy.. and it's so tasty and mild that you can just pour it onto a spoon and eat.
it's not cheap, but it is so worth it.
This sounds like a delicious new way to enjoy one of my favorite fish! I know little a bout sous vide cooking but I read something about making a sous vide cooker using an older style crock pot cooker and an Arduino processor, both of which I have. So, I might have to try this. *Yum*
*nods* Actually, for the technically inclined, it's not that difficult to rig up one on your own, using the basic components you mentioned and a couple others.
- You'll want a relay or similar component that you can switch on and off using an output from your Arduino, and with secondaries that can handle 120V and the current of your crock pot.
- You'll want a parts box and an AC outlet of some type that you can attach to the high-current side of your relay-item.
- And you'll want some form of thermocouple or other temperature measuring device that changes resistance, which can serve as the input to your Arduino. The more accurate one of those, the better.
Of course, you'll need a method of controlling and powering the Arduino, but that sort of goes without saying.
An extra option is some sort of very cheap pump that can gently move the water around. This ensures every bit of the food being submerged is subject to the identical temperatures, but it isn't essential.
The trick, where your programming ability will come into play, is adjusting the setpoints for triggering the relay for the pot heaters, to account for the thermal mass of the crock liner and water. Without that, the temperature will overshoot slightly as water reaches the set point, but the heat continues to migrate through the liner even after the heaters shut off (and of course, they will take a bit to cool off themselves). Same for turning them back on again. If you wait for the water to actually cool down somewhat, it will keep cooling while the heaters warm up and the liner soaks up some of the thermal energy.
You'll probably want to set it so that the heaters cycle on a time period based on the desired temperature, with a secondary loop to adjust that time period quicker or longer based on whether the temp is holding, rising, or falling. And an initial "always on" pre-heat period to get the water to rise to the desired temp faster, then kick over to the time-cycle as it approaches the set point.
Not so much like a normal oven that reads a lower temperature and turns the coils on until it reads the right temperature, then turns them off. That causes a heat profile like a sign wave.
Given what wuffy has seen in your journals, this ought to be a pretty easy build for you. *smiles*
- You'll want a relay or similar component that you can switch on and off using an output from your Arduino, and with secondaries that can handle 120V and the current of your crock pot.
- You'll want a parts box and an AC outlet of some type that you can attach to the high-current side of your relay-item.
- And you'll want some form of thermocouple or other temperature measuring device that changes resistance, which can serve as the input to your Arduino. The more accurate one of those, the better.
Of course, you'll need a method of controlling and powering the Arduino, but that sort of goes without saying.
An extra option is some sort of very cheap pump that can gently move the water around. This ensures every bit of the food being submerged is subject to the identical temperatures, but it isn't essential.
The trick, where your programming ability will come into play, is adjusting the setpoints for triggering the relay for the pot heaters, to account for the thermal mass of the crock liner and water. Without that, the temperature will overshoot slightly as water reaches the set point, but the heat continues to migrate through the liner even after the heaters shut off (and of course, they will take a bit to cool off themselves). Same for turning them back on again. If you wait for the water to actually cool down somewhat, it will keep cooling while the heaters warm up and the liner soaks up some of the thermal energy.
You'll probably want to set it so that the heaters cycle on a time period based on the desired temperature, with a secondary loop to adjust that time period quicker or longer based on whether the temp is holding, rising, or falling. And an initial "always on" pre-heat period to get the water to rise to the desired temp faster, then kick over to the time-cycle as it approaches the set point.
Not so much like a normal oven that reads a lower temperature and turns the coils on until it reads the right temperature, then turns them off. That causes a heat profile like a sign wave.
Given what wuffy has seen in your journals, this ought to be a pretty easy build for you. *smiles*
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