Vietnamese Grilled Salmon Food

ASIAN GRILLED SALMON

Steps:

• Light charcoal briquettes in a grill and brush the grilling rack with oil to keep the salmon from sticking.
• While the grill is heating, lay the salmon skin side down on a cutting board and cut it crosswise into 4 equal pieces. Whisk together the mustard, soy sauce, olive oil, and garlic in a small bowl. Drizzle half of the marinade onto the salmon and allow it to sit for 10 minutes.
• Place the salmon skin side down on the hot grill; discard the marinade the fish was sitting in. Grill for 4 to 5 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fish. Turn carefully with a wide spatula and grill for another 4 to 5 minutes. The salmon will be slightly raw in the center, but don't worry; it will keep cooking as it sits.
• Transfer the fish to a flat plate, skin side down, and spoon the reserved marinade on top. Allow the fish to rest for 10 minutes. Remove the skin and serve warm, at room temperature, or chilled.

VIETNAMESE-STYLE CARAMELIZED SALMON

Steps:

• Sprinkle salt on both sides of the salmon steaks and set a side. (Note: 1/2 teaspoon of salt is the total amount to use for all the salmon steaks)
• Thinly slice shallot, ginger and tomatoes. Smash the garlic. Remove seeds from the bird's-eye chili. Set aside.
• In a small saucepan, add 2 tablespoons of sugar and 2 tablespoons of water. Bring to a boil, the sugar will fully dissolve. Lower the heat to medium, continue to simmer. You will see that a lot of bubbles on the surface. The mixture will then turn from clear to yellow, and get darker as you simmer it. When it has a honey color, reduce the heat slightly. Keep watching closely, until it has a dark caramel color, turn off the heat and carefully add 1 tablespoon of water. Swirl the saucepan to combine (add 1/2 - 1 more tablespoon of water if the caramel sauce is too thick) and remove it from the stove. Set aside.
• In a pan over medium high heat, sear salmon steaks for 2-3 minutes each side or until golden. Transfer them to a plate.
• Place a pot that can fit all the salmon in a single layer on medium heat. Add oil and sauté shallots for a few seconds Add garlic and ginger and sauté for a few more seconds until fragrant. Arrange them to cover the bottom of the pot and place tomato slices on top. Place salmon steaks on top of the tomatoes.
• Add 1 1/2 cups of water or enough to cover the fish, add fish sauce, caramel sauce and bird's-eye chili and bring to a boil. Lower to a simmer (low - medium low heat). Sprinkle plenty of black pepper and simmer 10 minutes then gently flip the fish. You can taste the braising liquid and adjust to taste, but remember it will get saltier as we continue cooking and reduce the liquid further.
• Continue to simmer for 20-30 minutes, flip the fish one (or two) more time. Occasionally spoon the braising liquid over the salmon. If the liquid reduces too rapidly, you can add a little more water. In the last 5-10 minutes of cooking, watch closely because it may burn. The liquid will reduce, thicken like a sauce. Turn off the heat when there's just enough sauce to coat the bottom of the pot (or sooner if you prefer more sauce).
• Transfer salmon to a shallow serving bowl and sprinkle some more black pepper. Serve with rice.

GRILLED SALMON WITH CHILI-LIME SAUCE (CA NUONG GUNG; NUOC MAM CH

Steps:

• To marinate fish, in a medium bowl, combine the oil, ginger, garlic, shallots, fish sauce, soy sauce, and sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar and mix everything well. Place the salmon fillets in the bowl and turn to coat with the marinade. Cover and set aside for 20 to 30 minutes, or cover and refreigerate for up to 1 day.
• To prepare the sauce, combine all the ingredients in a small bowl(last 6 ingredients on the list above).
• Stir to dissovle the sugar and mix everything well. Place on the serving platter you will use for the fish.
• To cook the fish, build a hot charcoal fire, preheat a gas grill, or preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the fish steaks carefully on the grill and grill for about 5 minutes each side, or until cooked to your liking, or bake about 15 minutes. transfer to the serving platter alongside the Chili-lime sauce and serve hot or warm.

GRILLED SALMON SALAD WITH LIME, CHILES AND HERBS

Steps:

• Light the grill for indirect heat, or heat the oven to 450 degrees.
• As the grill or oven heat up, make the dressing: Halve 1 lime, and squeeze its juice into a small bowl. Add the chile slices, half of the sliced shallot (save the rest for serving), the fish sauce and a pinch each salt and sugar. Let sit for 1 minute to dissolve the salt, then whisk in the olive oil. It won't emulsify, so mix again before using.
• Brush the salmon with oil, and place it in a grilling basket if you have one. Cook over the indirect (unlit) side of the grill, for 2 to 5 minutes per side, depending on how hot the grill is and how thick the salmon is. Note that individual fillets will cook faster than a single large piece. Check the salmon often. (Alternatively, roast the salmon on a baking sheet in the oven, until just cooked to taste, 7 to 12 minutes; you don't have to flip it.)
• As the salmon cooks, halve the other lime. Brush the cut sides with olive oil and grill, cut-side down, over direct heat until charred, about 1 minute. If using the oven, throw the halves, cut-side up, on the roasting pan with the salmon. They won't char, but they will cook and mellow in flavor, which is the aim.
• When the salmon is cooked, transfer it to a plate and spoon some dressing over it. Let it cool slightly, then break up the fish into large chunks.
• Place greens, remaining shallots, herbs, and radishes or cucumber, if using, in a large shallow bowl or on a platter, and add a little more of the dressing. Squeeze some of the juice from a charred lime half over it and drizzle with a little olive oil. Toss and taste, adding lime juice, olive oil or salt as needed.
• Top with the salmon chunks and drizzle with more (or all) of the dressing. Serve with the remaining charred lime half on the side for squeezing.