I’ve been a huge fan of Rory O’Connell for years. Not only did he co-found Ballymaloe Cookery School with his sister Darina Allen in 1983, but he has also worked with Alice Waters at Chez Panisse in California, he was the 2013 Winner of the André Simon Book Award for his book Master It, and he has been the Ambassador of the Year for Good Food Ireland.
Not too long ago, my husband and I took a cookery course at Ballymaloe and were fortunate to have Rory as one of our instructors. He was funny, wickedly talented, and generous with his knowledge. Here are a few photos from the weekend:
Today’s recipe for oven baked salmon in an aluminum parcel with lemon, chili and mint comes straight out of Master It: How to Cook Today. It is easy to make {despite its long-winded name} and tastes great. Of course, as you know, salmon is a hearty fish with a subtle flavour; the chili, lemon and mint in this recipe adds just a tiny bit of zing to this otherwise delicious fish. I recently served it with a side of quinoa, cooked in vegetable stock, mixed with chopped kale. Rory suggests boiled new potatoes and peas, and sometimes a tomato and basil side salad. Any way you chose, I think you’ll find this recipe really makes for a lovely little dinner.
~XoK
Rory O’Connell’s Salmon in a Foil Bag with Lemon, Chili & Mint
Serves 4
Ingredients
80g/5-1/2 tablespoons butter, softened
4 x 150g fillets of salmon, skin removed
Maldon sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Pinch of chili flakes
Grated zest of 1/2 a lemon
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 tablespoon mint leaves
4 lemon wedges, to serve
Directions
1. Preheat oven to 200ºC/400°F and put a baking tray in to heat up.
2. Cut a piece of foil about 80cm long and lay it on your worktop. Fold in half from the top down, just to crease the centre line crossways, and open it out again. Rub the lower half of the foil, where the fish will be sitting, with some of the soft butter.
3. Place both pieces of {rinsed and dried} fish on the foil and season with salt and pepper, chili flakes and the lemon zest.
4. Pour the lemon juice over and dot the remaining butter on top of the fish.
5. Fold the top of the foil down and seal the sides with two sharp and definite folds. Seal the mouth of the bag with two more tight folds – there should be plenty of space around the fish inside the bag to allow for steam to build up during cooking.
6. Place the parcel on the heated tray and cook for 15 minutes, by which time the bag should be inflated like a balloon {mine did not inflate but it still cooked perfectly}.
7. While the fish is cooking, coarsely chop the mint leaves. Slash open the bag along the top of the foil and sprinkle the chopped mint all over the fish. Serve immediately, on hot plates with lemon wedges, making sure you spoon the buttery juices over the fish first.
Additional Notes, Related Articles & Credit:
* Here’s a few other delicious salmon recipes from In an Irish Home: Oven Roasted Salmon, Salmon Fillets with Pesto and Pecorino, Salmon Pesto Pasta.
** Burren Smokehouse, just 15 minutes from the Cliffs of Moher, is one of my favourite places to buy smoked Irish salmon.
*** From SpoonUniversity a quirky article: “What You Need to Know About Salmon Skin Before Eating It”.
In an Irish Home 