Cubes of raw salmon are seasoned and tossed with cherry tomatoes, sliced red onion, Apetina (a white cheese similar to feta) and two salad dressings. Yes, two. One for the vegetables and another for the salmon.
Cook’s notes
Why two? Well, the vegetables need oil and acid to make them more palatable so the veggies were tossed with a simple mixture of extra virgin olive oil, Balsamic vinegar and herb salt. But I didn’t want the salmon to soak in the vinegar too much to avoid textural changes. So, a second dressing — store-bought aioli — was added.
What does vinegar do to raw fish anyway? Soaking raw fish in vinegar or citrus juice gives it an appearance of cooked fish. The texture also changes. That’s fine if you’re making ceviche but, for this salad, I wanted the salmon to retain its beautiful raw flavor and texture. Hence, the use of two salad dressings.
If you can get your salmon really fresh, good for you. Buy the whole fish and fillet it, and you’ll have the best salmon ever. If you buy your fish pre-cut and chilled or frozen, make sure that you can trust that your purveyor sells only quality fish. Any fish that had been cut sould be blast frozen immediately, and should not be thawed and re-frozen repeatedly. The fish should be thawed only once — when you prepare the salad. And remember to serve the salad immediately.
Salmon, tomato and cheese salad
Ingredients
- 300 grams skinless salmon fillet (10.5 oz) cut into one-inch cubes
- 1 teaspoon lemon pepper seasoning
- 200 grams Apetina (7 oz) cut into half-inch cubes
- 2 tablespoons Balsamic vinegar
- 2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
- ¼ teaspoon herb salt or substitute a pinch of salt and a pinch of pepper
- 300 grams cherry tomatoes (10.5 oz) halved
- 1 red onion peeled and thinly sliced
- ⅓ to ½ cup thinly sliced scallions
- 2 tablespoons aioli
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh dill
Instructions
- Line a plate with paper towels, spread the salmon, top with more paper towels and press to remove excess moisture. Discard the paper towels.
- Toss the salmon with salt and pepper seasoning. Cover the plate and keep in the fridge.
- Dump the Apetina into a strainer.
- Make a simple dressing by mixing Balsamic vinegar, extra virgin olive oil and herb salt (or salt and pepper).
- Place the halved cherry tomatoes, onion slices and scallions in a mixing bowl. Drizzle in the dressing and toss well.
- Add the drained Apetina, seasoned salmon and dill.
- Drizzle in the aioli and toss.
- Serve immediately.
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