As much as I love salmon, if you don’t cook it the right way, it can become dry which can ruin the taste. I am going to share with you guys the secret to making the most tender salmon. I recently learned this from a friend of mine’s sister in law who is a great cook. I hope you enjoy this delicious Asian salmon recipe! Also, if you are looking for more Lenten meals like this one, check out my Lent post from this year for a list of meals on my website.
I was over for dinner at her house and I tasted the most delicious piece of salmon in my life! I asked her what she did to make it taste so good. She simply said “scotch”. The scotch tenderizes the meat when you marinate it ahead of time and the fish will just melt in your mouth.
She told me that bourbon, whiskey or scotch works, but bourbon is the best. I love that because bourbon is my favorite of the 3! Let me tell you that she is absolutely right about the liquor making it taste great. I tried this at home and came out with the best tasting salmon I have ever made! Now for the Asian salmon recipe…
Asian Salmon That is Tender, Paleo, and Grain Free
Ingredients
- 1.5 lbs wild caught salmon filets
- ¼ cup bourbon or whiskey or scotch (bourbon is the best!) - I used Chestnut Farms bourbon
- ¼ cup organic shoyu or tamari or coconut aminos
- ⅛ cup avocado oil
- 1 inch fresh organic ginger, crushed with a garlic press
- 4 small cloves of garlic, crushed with a garlic press
- One organic green onion, thinly sliced
- Sea salt (optional) and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
- The first step is to marinate the salmon, preferably overnight or for 24 hours. If you start marinating too late, that is fine, but know that the salmon will be even more tender the longer you marinate it.
- Lightly salt and pepper each side of the salmon. If you are worried about it being too salty, leave out the salt since soy sauce or coconut aminos are being used.
- Mix the bourbon, shoyu and avocado oil together.
- Crush the ginger and garlic with a garlic press into the liquid mixture. The juices will release more this way.
- Slice one green onion and add it to the mixture.
- Pour the mixture over the salmon and make sure each side is coated with the liquid.
- I used a baking dish as my vessel for marinating and covered it tightly with plastic wrap.
- Place the dish in the refrigerator overnight or for 24 hours. I marinated my filets for 24 hours.
- Every once in a while, I checked inside the refrigerator to make sure the liquid was covering the salmon. Another option is to flip the pieces periodically.
- You may alternatively marinate the salmon in a large plastic bag.
- When you are ready to cook the salmon, preheat the oven to 400. Make sure it is preheated all the way before you put the salmon in the oven.
- Place the marinated salmon in a baking dish or baking stone for 15 minutes. Our salmon was a little more than an inch thick. This was the perfect cooking time for our cut of salmon. Keep in mind how long you bake it depends on the thickness of the cut of fish. A general rule of thumb is 4 to 6 minutes per half inch of thickness.
- The salmon is ready to serve. We ate ours with nutrient dense rice cooked in bone broth and slices of avocado. It is also great with sautéed vegetables, a salad and a side of potatoes.
I would love to hear about your results marinating salmon or other fish in bourbon. Let me hear about it in the comments!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xo6gm7a8diM
