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Thursday, March 31, 2011

Lemongrass Wild King Salmon Spring Roll

Among Asian cuisines, Vietnamese food has always been an unfamiliar territory to me. Growing up, I never had the chance to sample authentic Vietnamese food. That changed when I tried my very first Vietnamese Spring Roll, with the fragrance and freshness wrapped in one spring roll, paired with a garlic spicy dip. As a part of the 5 Star Makeover Cooking Group, I made a deconstructed Vietnamese Lemongrass Wild King Salmon Spring Roll.

Lemongrass Wild King Salmon Spring Roll

The key to making the perfect spring roll is to keep the ingredients as fresh and flavorful as possible. I poached the Wild King Salmon in lemongrass, chicken stock, white wine, orange juice, and garlic. The usual plain rice vermicelli was lightly sauteed in olive oil and green onions. Accompanying the poached salmon are cilantro dust, pesto drops, and steamed baby carrot. For the dipping sauce, I made a spicy garlic sweet and sour jello with fried mint chips.

Lemongrass Poached Salmon, Green Onion Fried Vermicelli, Steamed Baby Carrot,
Cilantro Dust, Pesto Drops, and Spicy Garlic Jello with Fried Mint Chips

I have to thank 5 Star Foodie and Lazaro Cooks! for a fun lesson on sustainable fish. As a part of the 5 Star Makeover Cooking Group, our March theme was Sustainable Fish. It was interesting to learn from the Monterey Bay Aquarium website sustainability of different types of seafood. I have always been a huge fan of salmon and now I know to select wild-caught salmon from Alaska due to the excellent monitoring of fish populations and fishery. To me, understanding the ingredient is just as important, if not more, as cooking or consuming.


At Santa Monica Seafood, I picked out a beautiful fillet of wild-caught Alaskan King Salmon.

Wild Alaskan King Salmon
I was so excited to cook with these ingredients and enjoy my spring roll with sustainable seafood!

11 comments:

  1. Awesome post. Sustainability is really important so we're able to keep enjoying the fish we love the most. You are an artist my friend.

    beautiful job
    cheers

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  2. Great addition to this month's makeover event. Creativly conceptualized and presented dish.

    Bravo.

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  3. Jessica, an amazing deconstruct of a salmon spring roll! I love all the creative components on your beautifully presented plate! Excellent!

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  4. i love the garlic jello! I could eat that all day. Nice work in deconstructing it all. I've also not been so in Vietnamese food so this is a nice intro to it.

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  5. Jellied dishes have a great history and you have done them proud with this addition... so many beautiful flavors in this dish and your deconstruction is really special... it looks serene on the plate!

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  6. I love spring rolls too! What a totally creative take to deconstruct and change everything around on the plate! I love the jello!! You've outdone yourself again!

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  7. The first picture looks straight out of a food magazine! The creativity, technique, and execution is just amazing. I really want to try that garlic jello! You did the deconstruction theme proud, and I think I would rather eat your interpretation than an actual spring roll. I think I could eat that beautiful salmon fillet just as is...

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  8. The coloring on the salmon is just goregous and your dish is so fun and inventive. Any time you create a deconstructed version of something it's always fun. I also love the sound of your poaching liquid. It sounds like it adds just the right amount of flavor without taking away from the deliciousness of the fish.

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  9. It's beautiful! And such a creative concept!

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  10. I adore Vietnamese food and love the idea of salmon poached with lemongrass. Not only that, but your dish is a wonderful treat for the eyes, well done.

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  11. This is beautiful and really channels the spirit of Vietnamese food - its fragrance, beauty, and deceptive simplicity.

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