Chili-Glazed Salmon

Glazing salmon with a chili sauce of some kind may not make much sense to you – until you try it. It’s a method of cooking fish you will find in places like Thailand, where just about any kind of fish is used.

The important thing is not to overcook the salmon. The first time it comes out of the pan it will still be partly raw. Don’t worry about that, it will continue to cook on its own while you prepare the glaze.

This is what you need for four people:

4 thick salmon steaks
50g clarified butter
250ml white wine
1tbs chili paste
1tbs brown sugar, tightly packed
1tbs cooking oil + 1tsp sesame oil
Freshly ground black pepper

Pepper the steaks generously, pressing the grains into the flesh with your finger-tips.

Heat the butter in a thick skillet to smoking point and sear the steaks on both sides. Lower the heat and cook for exactly 3 minutes each side, turning only once.

Set the steaks aside on a warm plate and cover them with kitchen foil.

Add the wine to the pan and return it to the heat, stirring to scrape up and burnt bits sticking to the bottom of the pan. Boil and reduce by half.

Over a medium heat, stir in the chili paste, brown sugar and the two oils, combining the mixture into a smooth paste.

Return the salmon steaks to the pan, as well as any juice that might have leached out of them, and simmer for no more than 1 minute, turning once to coat both sides with the glaze.

Serve on warm plates with a little of the glaze spooned over each steak.

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