Confit of Salmon Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

Confit of Salmon Salad with Mustard Vinaigrette

Servings: 4

For the salmon confit:

  • 1 pound salmon
  • 1 1/2 cup olive oil
  • 1 each bouquet garni
  • 1 clove garlic, smashed
  • 1 teaspoon black peppercorns

For the salad:

  • 4 each small beets, roasted in foil and peeled
  • 1/2 pound fingerling potatoes, roasted
  • 1 cup cippoline onions, roasted
  • 1 cup frisee lettuce, cleaned and roughly chopped
  • 1 cup red leaf lettuce, cleaned and roughly chopped
  • 4 each eggs, hard-cooked in the shell
  • 1 tablespoon parsley, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon chervil, chopped
  • 1 tablespoon chives, chopped
  • 2 teaspoons tarragon, chopped
  • fleur de sel and cracked pepper, to taste

For the mustard vinaigrette:

  • 1 each large egg yolk
  • 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
  • 1 1/2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 3/4 cup extra virgin olive oil (you could use the oil you used for the salmon)
  • salt and black pepper to taste, to taste

Directions:

  1. Make a 5-10% salt solution in cold water and brine the salmon for 20 minutes.
  2. Combine the olive oil with the bouquet garni, garlic and black peppercorn in a small, shallow saucepan. Heat over very low heat until the oil reaches 150′F.
  3. Add the salmon and cook for about 5 minutes, or until the salmon just begins to firm up. Carefully lift the salmon from the pan and place on paper towels to drain. You could use the oil in the mustard vinaigrette, you can also re-use the flavored oil to make more or in shrimp ceviche, etc…
  4. Whisk the egg yolk in a small bowl with mustard, vinegar, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Whisk in the olive oil. Adjust seasoning.
  5.  Mix the parsley, chervil, chives and tarragon and reserve.
  6. Slice the beets and the potatoes and toss all the ingredients of the salad together with the mustard vinaigrette. (except the herbs and the eggs).
  7. Dress the salad, divide the salmon confit among the plates and sprinkle with the fines herbs, some fleur de sel and some cracked pepper, slice and arrange the eggs around the salmon.

Notes:

Salmon contains a protein, albumin, that generates a white congealed scum on the outside of the flesh, as shown in the photo. This is the same protein that leeches out of hamburgers and other meats, typically forming slightly gray “blobs” on the surface. You can avoid this by brining the fish in a 5–10% salt solution (by weight) for 20 minutes, which will set the proteins. (So, 16 ounces of water to .8-1.6 ounces of salt.)