Blackened Salmon Salad

I have been exploring the world of catering after meeting Lori Granito of Go Gourmet Catering and Cooking Studio and Magnolia’s Private Kitchen.  Born and raised in New Orleans, Lori has been bringing her authentic Cajun style cooking to Hong Kong for over 20 years.  Her food evokes memories from a 2011 road trip through the Southern States that I took with Natalya and some friends.  We basically ate our way from Texas to Florida.  Louisiana was a particular favorite stop where we hit up all the foodie classics in New Orleans: Willie Mae’s fried chicken, Domilise’s Po-Boys, and beignets at Cafe Du Monde.
 



Inspired from my time with Lori, I decided to attempt some Cajun cooking at home.  I recently posted an adapted recipe for Grilled Antipasto Ribbon Salad that Go Gourmet offers on its express lunch menu.  Another salad favorite on the menu is Lori’s Blackened Salmon Salad, which is served on a bed of mixed greens with cornbread croutons and creole mustard dressing.  Those cornbread croutons are incredibly indulgent; I could snack on those all day long!

I attempted my own version at home (sans the cornbread… I would say because I wanted healthier however the truth is I am just not an ambitious baker) and I loved how simple it was to jazz up salmon fillets with Cajun spices.  Although tempted to use the bottle of premade Cajun seasoning I had in my pantry, I decided to make my own spice mix from a recipe on Allrecipes.com.  I opted for a drizzle of olive oil instead of butter to keep the fish lighter.  For the dressing, I modified my homemade Honey Mustard Dressing with a Creole update by adding whole grain mustard and some of the Cajun spice mix I made.  The results were delicious and relatively healthy (on a Cajun cooking scale that is!).

Blackened Salmon Salad

Yields: 4 servings

Ingredients:

• 4 salmon fillets, skins removed
• olive oil to drizzle

Cajun Seasoning Ingredients:

• 2 T paprika
• 1 T ground cayenne pepper
• 1 T onion powder
• 2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground white pepper
• 1/2 tsp ground black pepper
• 1/4 tsp dried thyme
• 1/4 tsp dried basil
• 1/4 tsp dried oregano

Creole Mustard Dressing Ingredients:

• 1/2 C dijon mustard
• 1 T whole grain mustard
• 4 T honey
• 1/4 C olive oil
• 1 tsp lemon juice
• 1 tsp of the Cajun seasoning mix (recipe above)

Directions:

In a small bowl, mix all the Cajun seasoning ingredients together.  Reserve 1 tsp of the spice mix for the salad dressing.

Drizzle the salmon fillets on both sides with olive oil and sprinkle the Cajun seasoning evenly on the fish.  Drizzle a little more olive oil on each side.

In a large, heavy skillet over high heat, cook the salmon until blackened, about 2-5 minutes. Turn fillets and continue cooking until blackened and fish is easily flaked with a fork.

To make the dressing, toss all the ingredients into a bowl and whisk until everything is silky and smooth.  Another method is to toss all the ingredients in a jar, stir lightly with a fork, and then shake until smooth and silky.

Place the cooked salmon fillet on a bed of mixed greens and drizzle with the Creole mustard dressing.  For a fuller meal, try serving it with steamed asparagus or French green beans.  Enjoy!