Glazed salmon with kadaif: Making every fillet a party
Three layers of complementary textures and flavors combine below to create “the most unexpected and totally satisfying dish,” said Danielle Renov in Peas, Love & Carrots (Mesorah Publications). The crowning touch is kadaif, or kadayif, which makes such an excellent topping for fish that you should use this recipe as inspiration for other experiments. The finely shredded phyllo dough, often used for Turkish desserts, can be purchased frozen (which is my preference) or dried, in sealed bags.
The crispy “party-in-your-mouth” kadaif sits atop a paste that combines creamy, earthy tahini with sweet tamarind. And below that sits the rich, flaky salmon, which I cook in individual fillets to avoid having to cut through the kadaif later.
Need more ideas? Try sprinkling the salmon with Montreal steak seasoning and spreading on a layer of horseradish mayo (recipe below). Or simply trade out the tahini and tamarind for a smear of honey mustard. “Go, play, have fun, and then tell me what you did, so I can do it, too.” 1½ tsp kosher salt
½ tsp coarsely ground black pepper ½ cup tahini paste
2 tbsp plus 1 tsp tamarind concentrate 2 tbsp maple syrup
4 tbsp olive oil
4 cups frozen kadaif, defrosted
½ cup pomegranate seeds, for garnish
Preheat oven to 350. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Arrange salmon fillets on sheet and sprinkle with salt and pepper. In a bowl, combine tahini, tamarind, maple syrup, and 2 tbsp olive oil. Spread about 1 tbsp of this mixture over each salmon fillet.
To a large bowl, add kadaif; drizzle with olive oil. Gently toss the kadaif in the bowl 2-3 times to just spread the oil. Top each salmon fillet with kadaif strands, covering fish with a sort of nest.
Bake for 18-20 minutes until fish is just cooked through and kadaif is golden and crunchy. To reach maximum crunchability, it may be necessary to finish with two minutes of broiling.
Garnish with pomegranate seeds and serve hot or cold. Serves 8.
Horseradish mayo
2 eggs
1 large clove garlic
2½ tsp kosher salt
1 tsp ground black pepper juice of 2 lemons (about ¼ cup)
¹⁄³ cup prepared white horseradish 2 cups canola oil
Combine ingredients in the tall container that comes with your immersion blender. Lower the blender until it touches the bottom, then turn it on. Blend until you no longer see streams of oil running downward, then carefully lift one side of the blender to allow any more oil to stream in and continue blending, lifting alternate sides as you draw the blender upward and eventually reach the top of the mixture.