Salmon Simplicity

Long before there were chefs, people were eating salmon. That's a fact. So why have things gotten so complicated?

We chefs, as a profession, have done all sorts of things to this poor benighted fish, and I'm not sure all of them worked for the better. Salmon, in my opinion, stands up for itself, so let's keep it simple for a change.

Middle cuts, which tend to have an even thickness, are the best for pan frying. They should have the skin still on and the pin bones removed.

Huh? Pardon me? Pin bones?

Yup. Pin bones. Deadly little varmints. The way to find them is to run your fingers along the cutlet in the direction of where the head used to be. The way to remove them is by using eyebrow tweezers. These remove them very easily, which is why every chef has a pair in his tool kit.

Well, that's my excuse and don't let anyone tell my wife different!

Okay, having removed the pesky bones, the next step is to rub some salt into the skin. Then heat a skillet into which you have put 1 tbs of oil and a generous knob of butter. The oil is to prevent the butter from burning - but it doesn't really matter all that much if it does.

Once the butter is foaming, drop the fish in skin side down and allow it to cook on high heat. The skin will crisp up and you will see the flesh begin to change color at the sides. Let this change of color reach about two thirds of the way up the cutlet and then flip it over, at the same time removing the pan from the heat.

You now have two or three minutes in which to do other things, such as arranging new potatoes and snow peas on the plates, or hiding the eyebrow tweezers from prying eyes. This is also a good time to freshen up your wine glass.

Serve the fish skin-side down and spoon a little of the nutty, buttery pan juices over each portion. How simple is that?

One other trick you might like to try: once the fish has been removed return the pan to the heat and splash in a couple of tablespoons of white balsamic vinegar. Bubble this up and then spoon over the cutlets as before.

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