Light & Refreshing: Grilled Chile-Lime Salmon

I remember when I found this recipe.  I knew I wanted grilled salmon.  However, since my fish-cooking knowledge is rather limited, I wasn't sure how to season the salmon.  At the time, I had a handful of limes on-hand from another meal I had made recently and I didn't want them to go to waste.  When I searched for "grilled salmon" on epicurious.com (I love epicurious.com because they have all the recipes from pretty much all recent issues of Gourmet, RIP), it yielded a whole slough of different recipes and I couldn't really get into any of them.  I was definitely looking for a recipe which was simple and quick, but, of course, tasty.  One recipe stuck out above the rest:  grilled chile-lime arctic char.  I had had arctic char before and I remembered it was very similar to salmon; same fatty and pink fish with similar flavors.  It helped that the recipe included some substitution options at the bottom, including swapping out the arctic char with salmon.  Perfect!

One thing I look forward to during the summer is asparagus.  Yes, and lets get this out of the way to get our giggles out beforehand:  asparagus makes your pee smell.  In some ways, I find this reassuring that my body is working the way it should.  But yeah, depending on the asparagus, it can be rather embarrassing in mixed company.  However, when it's just Marshall and I - who cares?  So, Marshall and I made a trip to our local farmer's market and picked up some really awesome, super thin, asparagus - totally perfect for grilling.  I simply drizzled them with olive oil, salt and pepper, and they went on the grill until tender.  You'll also see a tiny pile of sautéed spinach on my photographed plate.  This did not appear on our plate with leftovers, but I had some baby spinach I bought for my sandwiches the week before and I wanted to use it before it went bad.  I really love sautéed greens.  The spinach went into a pan with olive oil and chopped garlic.


All in all, it was a satisfying and light meal, perfect for a hot summer evening!


7 Garlic Cloves
2 Tablespoons Kosher Salt
1/4 Cup Fresh Lime Juice
2 Tablespoons Olive Oil
1-3/4 teaspoons Sugar
1-1/4 teaspoons Ground Chipotle Chile
2 (1-lb) arctic char or salmon fillets, with skin (about 1 1/4 inches thick)

1.  Mince garlic and mash to a paste with salt using a large heavy knife.

2.  Stir together garlic paste, lime juice, oil, sugar, and chipotle chile in a small bowl until sugar is dissolved.

3.  Remove any bones from fish with tweezers, then pat fish dry and place, skin side down, on a plastic-wrap-lined large tray.

4.  Rub chile mixture all over flesh side of fish, then wrap plastic around fish and marinate at cool room temperature 15 minutes.

5.  While fish is marinating, prepare grill for cooking over indirect heat with medium-hot charcoal (moderately high heat for gas).

6a.  To cook fish using a charcoal grill: Lightly oil grill rack, then put fish, skin side down, on grill rack with no coals underneath and grill, covered with lid, 4 minutes. Using 2 metal spatulas, loosen fish from grill rack and turn fish over, rotating 180 degrees. Grill fish, covered with lid, until just cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes more, then loosen from grill rack with spatulas and transfer to a clean platter. If desired, lift skin from fish with tongs and cook skin on rack directly over coals, turning over occasionally, until lightly browned and crisp, 1 to 2 minutes, then serve over fish.

6b.  To cook fish using a gas grill: Lightly oil grill rack, then put fish, skin side down, on rack above shut-off burner and grill, covered with lid, 4 minutes. Using 2 metal spatulas, loosen skin from grill rack and turn fish over. Grill fish, covered with lid, until just cooked through, 3 to 5 minutes more, then loosen from grill rack with spatulas and transfer to a clean platter.

7.  If desired, lift skin from fish with tongs and cook skin directly over a burner, uncovered, turning over occasionally, until lightly browned and crisp, 1 to 2 minutes, then serve over fish.

Credit:  http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Grilled-Chile-Lime-Arctic-Char-234643#ixzz0wAracunH


bon appetit!