David Kinch's Salmon with Hot Mustard Glaze

That's one glorious piece of fish, isn't it? The palest of pinks, oozing with freshness and moisture, and perfectly crisped on top. I have to say, if there's one thing to be learned from this recipe, it's how to cook the perfect piece of salmon. But then there's actually a second thing to learn. And that is that a hot mustard glaze isn't as good as it sounds.

I wanted to love this, I really did. After all, who can resist a recipe with just four ingredients? And from none other than David Kinch, of Manresa and Pim-ian fame? With a pedigree like that, this salmon was bound to be destined for the lamination files, I thought. Well, and to be fair, the method - briefly searing a center-cut piece of salmon on each side, then sticking it in a low oven for twenty minutes until it emerges quiveringly perfect - is possibly the only way I'll ever cook salmon again.

(I'll have to make an exception for poaching, since poached salmon is truly glorious, and because you can then combine it with a cooling yogurt-herb sauce and serve it in the summer and feel like an English rose and in addition, there's the very very very important bonus that poaching a salmon does not make your house smell like cooked fish and if there's one real problem I have in the kitchen, it's that cooked fish hanging in the air for a day or two or even three drives me absolutely batty and no amount of scented candles or yanked open doorways or tasteful room spray (there is such a thing, I swear, but you have to get feuille de menthe, that's the only one I can vouch for) can appease me until, well, a few days go by and I get around to cooking something new and the old smell finally goes away.)

BUT. Where was I? Oh yes, the mustard glaze. I don't know. It was too sweet and clashed oddly with the fish. There's no salt in the recipe and the glaze is really more of a slurry that runs right off the fish before the pan goes in the oven. Which maybe is the point? It seemed odd that I had to throw away so much of the mustard-sugar-water combination after brushing the fish with it. I've never made Nobu's famous miso-glazed cod (was it cod? sablefish? black cod? you know what I'm talking about), but I wonder if this recipe was born out of a fad started by that dish.

Ho-hum. I am suddenly convinced that this could quite possibly be the least interesting post I've ever written. Are you as bored as I am? The rest of this is going to be brief. The method, people, is what's important here. Okay? Forget about the glaze. That's all that really matters. And with that, I'm off to contemplate my bright future in food journalism, what with this post and all.

Salmon with Hot Mustard Glaze
Serves 4

½ cup mustard powder, preferably Colman's
½ cup sugar
2 pounds center-cut salmon fillet, about 2 inches thick at its thickest, with skin
2½ tablespoons extra virgin olive oil.

1.  Heat oven to 250 degrees. In a small bowl whisk mustard, sugar and ½ cup water together. Set aside.

2. Cut salmon into four uniform portions. Pat dry with paper towel. Heat 1 tablespoon oil in a heavy ovenproof skillet over high heat; skillet should be large enough to hold salmon without crowding. Add salmon skin side up, and sear quickly about 2 minutes, until it can be lifted easily with a spatula without sticking. Turn, and sear about 2 minutes skin side down. Thickest part should still be raw in center.

3. Brush top of salmon with remaining olive oil and then with mustard mixture. Place in oven about 20 minutes, until medium-rare in center. (An instant-read thermometer inserted in thickest part should register 100 to 110 degrees.) Remove from oven, and serve.

Comments

[sam]

least interesting????? least interesting post?
you diss our favourite David and think none of us will be interested ;)

You could blame it on the English instead - yes blame it on the English Mustard - we can take it - we are used to getting dissed about our food. We take it with a grain of (Maldon) salt.

[ann]

I think it was black cod. I had it once and yes, it was glorious, so glorious in fact that I briefly flirted with the idea of making it at home, that is until I found a recipe for it and realized it takes like, 3 day I believe, to make it.
No wonder it's so good!

[Homesick Texan]

To get rid of fishy smells, pour white vinegar in a spray bottle and spritz the air--your place will smell like vinegar for half an hour, but when that smell goes away, so will all other odors.

[Zarah Maria]

Lol, I found this post very funny Luisa - the whole English rose-poached fish-smelly kitchen rant?? Hilarious!;-)

[Nicky]

"it's that cooked fish hanging in the air " - I so hear you! We had some monk fish infused in olive oil and "cooked" in the oven at very low temperature... Great results, but three days later the whole place still smelled like fish. I used up all scented candles, but what really helped was - deliberately - spilling some milk on the stove and burning it... ;(

[Nicky]

Ooops, of course I meant "undeliberately" ...

[Anne]

I liked this post! And boy, that really is one mighty fine lookin' piece of fish. Sorry to hear the glaze didn't work. I can't stand it when my entree is too sweet. Also, good to know about the poaching/smell thing.

[Julie]

No salt! What's that all about?

I so hear you on the house-smelling-likd-fish thing. Even with the extractor fan going the whole time I'm cooking it, that fish smell still lies heavily in the air and lingers for a long time. My solution is to grill fish outside but the whole rigamarole of lighting the charcoal and waiting for the flames to get to the right point seems like a lot of trouble some days. Plus if it's really cold or rainy I have no enthusiasm at all for doing it.

[Tanna]

Yeah, the fish smell. My husband has a nose for cooking odors that are nerve racking. He really enjoys eating fish but not smelling it. Fish cooking on the stove top is absolutely outlawed. I can manage it in parchment and in a covered pan in the oven and outside but NOTHING else. I guess in our house it's grounds for divorce. I'd love to try the vinegar spray trick but if it didn't work...
No, this was an excellent post!!!

[Molly]

Oh girlfriend, I hear you! I made this salmon a little while back, and though I'd almost forgotten about it, your post brought back vivid memories of its mediocrity. I remember thinking the same thing about the salt - WHERE THE HELL IS IT?! - and throwing out a ton of leftover glaze. Argh. So sad.

But yes, you're right, the cooking method for the salmon is spot-on. Thanks for reminding me...

Happy weekend to you!

[Paige]

The history of this recipe is (at least to me) kind of interesting. Apparently, mustard glazed salmon like this was first served at the Quilted Giraffe in NY in the 80s, and was quite popular. I first found a similar recipe in the genius Best Recipe/Cooks Illustrated Grilling and BBQ cookbook (that's not the title, exactly, but it's something like that) and made on the grill, this salmon is truly divine (plus no stinky kitchen.) Maybe these proportions are weird? I'll have to check the recipe I use (which is downstairs in my office, and I'm too lazy to go get it before I post this...) but I swear on my mother's apple pie (the best in the world) that the CI version of this not only works, but is fantastic, and we make it, often, every summer....

[deb]

You're hilarious. The odds of me making or eating salmon are terrible (I know, shame on me) but you still manage to crack me up. Thank you.

[Luisa]

Sam - but I love Maldon salt! Sob. I know, let's blame it on the NYT instead, shall we? MUST be their fault ;)

Ann - three DAYS? yikes. Some things are better left to restaurant kitchens, no? I've (gasp) never been to Nobu, but I certainly know what I'll order if I ever do make it there.

Lisa - Genius! You made me exclaim aloud in my office. What a great idea - I'm trying it out tonight. My nose twitches in anticipation.

Zarah Maria - I aim to please, dear friend. Though seriously, my kitchen SMELLS.

Nicky - oh no, and burned milk is such a PAIN to clean! That recipe sounds pretty marvelous, though...

Anne - sweetened food belongs at dessert-time. I think that's a rule without exceptions, though I haven't thought it entirely through yet... ;)

Julie - it's the pits, isn't it? And I don't blame you for not wanting to grill in winter.

Tanna - Ben came in late last night, wrinkled his nose and said "This place smells awful!". Something tells me when we share a home that a similar decree will be put down. And I won't be entirely opposed.

Molly - I'm so glad to hear I wasn't alone in my puzzlement with this dish! Too bad. And now I've got all this leftover salmon and too many weekend plans. Rats. It's times like these I wish I had a cat. Happy weekend to you, too!!

Paige - I wonder if making it on the grill is the key? If you find out more, do let me know, I'm intrigued.

Deb - Thank YOU! Those are some kind words ;)

[lindy]

I am having a salmon moratorium at the moment. It used to be such a huge treat, and then it got to be too easy for me to get, or something, and I was having it all the time, and I think I lost my respect for it, kind of.
So I'm not having any for a bit, to see if I can then start loving it again. But I have always liked a mustardy or wasabi-ish something with salmon. I would have guessed that this recipe would be more interesting.
I thought I hated room scents and scented candles, until I was given a very posh one. Now I know I don't hate them at all-just can't afford the ones I like (very often).So I'm usually with the spraying vinegar thing too.

[Grant]

This method is exactly how I love to cook my salmon as well. But the recipe I use comes from the Balthazar Cookbook. They basically cook it the exact same way, but the fish IS salt and peppered and then one side is slathered with some nice Dijon mustard and then showered with breadcrumbs, although I would think you could also use something like Panko. The fish is seared crumb side down until golden and then flipped and finished in the oven. The coating gets nice and crisp and the dijon gives it a nice tang. It is so easy and the results are so elegant. It's great with lentils.

[Eileen]

4 ingredients? I think I'm still going to try this, even though you said the mustard glazing is not that good. But I love salmon. And this is one of the rare "easy" recipe.

[Jessika]

At the swedish christmas table a mustard glazed ham is traditionally served. It contains an egg yolk which keeps it from going all runny. With the ham being very salty the mix of sweet mustardy glaze and the salty ham is just absolutely delicious. As with this recipe, I must say that it is totally awkward not to have any salt, even with the mere glance of it.
Other than that the method of cooking salmon in the oven at a low temp is great - one I use all the time.

[Jessika]

The glaze contains an egg yolk is what I meant.

[Lydia]

Best way to get rid of fishy smell -- create a "counterirritant", like cooking cauliflower!

[Luisa]

Lindy - I totally get your salmon moratorium. I think the same thing happened to me and sushi. As for posh scented candles, they are worth every penny...I guess one could stop buying salmon, save that money and buy fancy candles instead. ;)

Grant - yum yum yum yum YUM. That sounds wonderful. But also a bit messy. So you panfry the fish WITH the breadcrumbs already on the underside? Do you find that they stick on or that they scatter all over the frying pan? AND with lentils, which are so fantastic with salmon. Might have to track this recipe down!

Eileen - if you love salmon and you love easy, just skip the glaze step and make the fish plain. Then squeeze a liberal amount of lemon juice on top and a wee drizzle of good olive oil.

Jessika - that sounds delicious. Wonder if an egg yolk in this glaze would have kept in on the fish further...

Lydia - good idea! Thanks for the tip.

[Larry]

Hey, Luisa - with your comments about the mustard glaze and the cooking method I went for it. Cooking method you have to watch - got a little overdone at 13 minutes in the oven after searing both sides.Next time will use the thermometer but thought I was cutting the time short enough
Did a cabernet sauce and it was good but not spectacular.
I rate dishes on a 1-10 scale and this was an 8.5.
Took some photos with my point and shoot - let me know if you want me to send them.