day 120: salmon challenge
I was stoked a few weeks ago when Matt came home from the grocery store with fresh salmon fillets. Matt doesn’t like salmon, so whenever we have it in the house I get to make whatever I want with it. I had homemade lox on the brain (something Matt hates most).
There was a catch though. Damn.
He says to me, “I bought this so you can make me a salmon recipe that I’ll actually like.” With that, I tossed the fillets in the freezer to be forgotten for 3 long weeks until today when I came across the PERFECT recipe. Italian-style shallow fried monkfish scalopinne in a red wine sauce from my favourite Italian cookbook Molto Italiano.
I thought it would work really well with salmon and gave it a go.
As a bonus I got to use the first of the fresh sage from my herb garden:
And how did it turn out?
Okay, so it’s not the most photogenic meal ever, but it was a definite SUCCESS!
To quote the husband: “This is restaurant quality. Maybe even better.”
Best Compliment Ever.
I guess I just have to work on my presentation skills before I can start serving this dish up to the masses.
Salmon Scaloppine with Red Wine and Sage
Adapted from Molto Italiano
Ingredients
- 1/4 cup durum semolina (or all purpose flour)
- Salt and pepper
- 1-pound piece salmon fillet, cut into 1/2-inch-thick slices
- 1/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 c. diced white onion
- 8 fresh sage leaves
- 12 small manzanilla olives, sliced
- 1 cup dry red wine
- 1/2 cup tomato sauce of choice
- 2 Tbsp cold unsalted butter
Directions
Place the flour on a plate and season with salt and pepper.
Pound each salmon slice with a mallet to a 1/4-inch thickness.
Heat the olive oil in a 12- to 14-inch nonstick pan over medium high heat.
Dredge the fish in the seasoned flour and sauté in the hot oil until golden brown on both sides, 5 to 6 minutes total.
Remove the fish and keep warm.
Add onion and sage to the pan and sauté 3 minutes, until softened and starting to brown.
Add the wine, the tomato sauce, and the olives and bring to a boil.
Reduce temperature to a simmer and return the fish to the pan.
Add the cold butter, and simmer for 5 minutes. The sauce should thicken slightly to coat the fish.
Man I love Italian cooking 
10 Comments
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glad Matt liked your dish! i’ve never tried a italian themed salmon but looks good!
I think that’d be a dish I’d like too. Congrats on winning the challenge!
Hmm, I’ve been wanting to get an Italian cookbook. I’ll consider this as a recommendation!
That’s a great compliment, congrats!
That sounds so good! Yum. I especially like that there’s unsalted butter in the tomato sauce (points) and olives (more points). I bet this would be amazing served over polenta…
And am so jealous you have fresh sage growing in your garden. I want fresh sage growing in my garden. If I had a garden.
Great recipe! I had something similar on the weekend in a restaurant, but with a white fish. And, it looked the same, so I’d say your presentation is bang on!
This sounds so yummy! I love Italian as well. Sage gives everything such a great flavor!
i love italian cooking too! what a fab recipe-it looks so good
I love Mario! After reading Heat I have such a respect for him. Glad to see his recipe get a good review
I love salmon and think Mario Batali is great so I’m sure this recipe tasted phenomenal!