I’ll admit we don’t eat enough fish in this household. I preach that it’s important to get at least 2 servings of fish(especially fatty fish) a week, but I rarely do myself. I take fish oil, that covers it, right? Probably not. It’s hard when your husband doesn’t really enjoy fish such as salmon. That’s my excuse. I shouldn’t let that be my crutch, but…I do. Another issue? Our house doesn’t have an exhaust fan. Yeah, imagine the smell in our house after we cook fish. Let’s just say it lingers for a quite a long time. Needless to say I do still manage to make fish every once in a while, and now that I’ve found this recipe for apricot-chile glazed salmon, I may just make it more often (no joke, it’s my new favorite salmon recipe).
Apricot-Chile Glazed Salmon
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Author: Adapted from EatingWell.com
Serves: 4
Ingredients
- 2 Tbsp. Ancho Chili Pepper (find at most supermarkets or spice stores)
- ¼ tsp. cayenne pepper
- ½ tsp. salt
- 1½ pounds center-cut wild salmon, skinned
- 3 Tbsp. apricot jam **
Instructions
- Preheat grilled (or grill pan) to medium-high.
- Combine chili and salt in a small bowl. Rub onto both sides of salmon.
- Place jam in a small saucepan; heat over low-medium heat, stirring until melted.
- Lightly oil or spray the grill rack. Grill the salmon four minutes on one side, then turn over. Using a pastry brush (or spoon) coat the top of the salmon with the melted jam. Close the grill (or cover the grill pan); cook until the salmon easily flakes with a fork, 3 to 5 minutes more. To serve, cut into 4 portions.
Notes
** If you are following a low FODMAPs diet, note that apricots are not low FODMAPs, so if you are in the elimination phase of the diet you may want to use an orange or mandarine jam instead. But if you’ve been on the diet for a while you may be able to handle this small amount of apricot jam (I handled it well). Be sure to look for a jam that has zero High Fructose Corn Syrup, or added “Fructose”.
Nutrition Information
Serving size: 1 4-ounce fillet Calories: 215 Fat: 6 g Saturated fat: 1 g Carbohydrates: 12 g Sugar: 6 g Sodium: 433 mg Protein: 29 g Cholesterol: 66 mg
Nutrition Highlights: Under 250 calories, excellent source of vitamin A (29% Daily Value), Potassium (18% Daily Value) and ~1200 mg Omega-3 (ie: a full day’s worth and beyond!).
You should be able to find this at most grocery stores, but if not go to your specialty spice market, they should definitely have it.
Do you have to use wild-caugh salmon in this recipe? No, but I did because I prefer the taste. Truth be told the omega-3 content of farm-raised vs. wild-raised salmon is quite similar (although some research shows that the ratio of omega 3 to omega 6 is greater in wild-raised, which of course would make it a better choice). And if you’re concerned about PCBs in farm-raised salmon, read this article from Harvard.Health.edu, it might make you feel a little better about eating farm-raised (at least, every once in a while….I would still recommend wild-raised over farm-raised if you eat salmon often). I will always say that any salmon is better than no salmon at all, because it’s truly the best source of omega-3, so if you can only afford farm-raised, eat it! Getting your fish from a reputable grocer who only buys form sustainable sources will hopefully give you confidence that your fish is safe and free of, or low in, things like PCBs, either way (thank you Giant Eagle!).
Even though Nick strongly dislikes salmon, I could tell he was this close to giving it a small taste. It just smelled so good that he almost forgot it was salmon. He didn’t try it, but oh well, more for me. It was fantastic.
After making and enjoying this salmon, and writing this blog post, I am reminded that I need to make fish a regular part of my diet (and Nick’s). I bought some frozen cod at the store the other day and plan on grilling it with some butter and simple herbs and spices for a dinner this week. I also bought some salmon burgers at the store because, hopefully, that way I’ll be reminded (and forced) to eat salmon twice a week. They really do make some amazing salmon burgers these days, but if you’re not a fan of frozen I would highly recommend this recipe for salmon burgers, which I need to make again (Nick actually ate them!).
Mmm, close up. And no, I didn’t burn these, the chili powder got a little dark when it was heated. These definitely didn’t taste as burned as they look, at all, but more like BBQ salmon. So good.
If you have any must-make salmon recipes you’d like to share, please post them in the comment section. I need more motivation to make more salmon (even if Nick won’t eat it). I may even take some salmon recipes and use Barramundi instead of salmon. Barramundi is actually higher in Omega-3 than salmon (although it’s also slightly more expensive) and doesn’t come with the strong fish-flavor and smell. It’s worth trying if you haven’t already.
