Sticky Maple Salmon with Crispy Rice + Mediterranean Brussels Sprouts
First Monday meal of the New Year. I love getting into our kitchen on a Monday night - our taproom is closed, so it’s free from distraction, and giving into a good dinner at the start of the week sets such a good tone for the week, which I love. Theme for cooking in 2024 - cooking one “intentional” meal each week. Something that is a bit of a project, a meal I’m truly excited to try, and something that gets me out of my comfort zone. This week I tackled salmon, and a Monday that was filled with computer work + distractions from the dogs (particularly a very needy Walter) was capped off with a Sticky Maple Salmon dinner paired with Crispy Rice + Mediterranean Brussels Sprouts. I tackled my fear of making fish, and we got to eat a really delicious Monday dinner as a result.
Salmon is out of my comfort zone. Seafood in general is out of my comfort zone! I used to hate fish - even the suggestion to have fish for dinner was my worst nightmare. I am truly a shame to my parents who brought me on so many Hawaiian vacations & took me to nice, oceanfront dinners, and I was the nerd ordering chicken teriyaki with extra sauce. But I’ve changed and I’ve grown, and thank god my palette is now on board for all the fish. This is the year I’m going to stop relying on my husband to make it for me and step up to the plate! I saw a recipe for a roasted salmon with a sticky, buttery sauce, and it just looked so good that I knew this was the one to get my hands dirty with. I studied that recipe, followed it to a freaking T, and just focused on taking my time. The result was beyond amazing. A perfect salmon dish and perfect sides to enjoy it with. Well composed, and I’m putting it in the “successful at-home meal” category.
Scoot over hot sauce
I am a self declared sauce boss, and the sauce on this salmon - holy crap it was the most delicious thing I will probably eat this week. A combo of garlic + butter + maple + bbq sauce, and it’s a recipe for success. It gets perfectly sticky + thick, so it really coats the fish, and it’s just a delight. The maple adds such a good flavor + just this little bit of sweetness that sets the tone for something truly tasty that is the perfect pairing for a salmon filet. Scoot over hot sauce.
You know when you go to a pretty basic seafood restaurant and you get your fish + a starch + a veggie? This felt kind of like that, but with a hipper, Food + Wine inspired vibe. As much as I hate to admit it, because I feel like it makes me sound like an old lady that loves an early bird special, but sometimes I love a dinner that has a little old school “meat + potatoes” vibe. In this case it’s the old school “fish + rice” but I can’t stress enough how great this was. Well composed, everything paired so well together, and it was a plate of food that was fun + satisfying to eat.
Unless it’s sushi - this is the rice I’m making
The understated star - this crispy rice. To be clear - this a very buttery roasted rice dish, and the butter is what makes it so good. It starts with onions that get cooked + seasoned to perfection in a whole stick of butter, then cooked rice is mixed right in, and it’s roasted to crispy perfection. We made this rice side during the holiday season, and it has been haunting my dreams + taste buds ever since.
Have you ever heard someone say “it’s better with butter” or just stress how good things cooked in butter really are? It’s honestly true. This rice is rich + addicting + all the crispy bits are so dang tasty. Even the some of the little chunks of onions go from caramelized to crispy. It’s a step up from the boring old rice dish that is maybe the scoop of rice on your plate from your childhood kind of vibe, and it’s bomb-dot-com.
Icing on the cake - Jordan, our resident salmon cooker here at our house, totally loved it + was very deliberate when telling me to “save this one.” So I walk away from this one, and save it here as my first meal-time triumph of 2024. And very happy to return the favor of cooking a real good salmon dinner for Jordan, and I think the score is now something like Jordan: 30 and Lesley: 1. But I’m happy to have my name on the board.
For the rice
1 c. of jasmine or white rice, cooked to package instructions
1 stick of butter + 1 tbsp of butter
1 onion, diced
Salt + pepper
For the Brussels
about 2 cup of Brussel sprouts, quartered
EVOO
Salt + pepper
pinch of red pepper flakes
2 tbsp sundried tomatoes, roughly chopped
2 tbsp of kalamata olives, roughly chopped
2 tbsp feta, crumbled
For the salmon
2 salmon filets, prepped and seasoned with salt + pepper
4 tbsp butter
5-6 garlic cloves, minced
1/3 c. maple
1/4 c. water
2 tbsp BBQ sauce (I like using a low sugar, low calorie sauce)
2-3 tbsp fresh parsley, chopped
1 lemon, cut into wedges
Tip for prep: cook the rice + brussels first, getting them both prepped and place in the oven at the same time. The cook time is similar, and these items can be fully cooked and roasted before firing up the salmon.
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Start by making the rice. Cook your rice in a small saucepan or rice cooker, and place a Dutch oven over medium heat. Melt 1 stick of butter. Once melted add in the onion until slightly caramelized - you want the onion pieces to be a light brown, caramel color and full translucent. Add in a pinch of salt + pepper, and stir. Add in the rice, stirring so the melted butter coats the rice, and then press the rice down. Creating a sort of rice dome in the Dutch oven. Set aside.
Prep the Brussel sprouts. Toss the veggies with a tbsp of EVOO, and a pinch of salt + pepper. Spread on a foil lined baking sheet.
Place the rice (keeping uncovered) + Brussels in the oven for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, dot the rice with the remaining 1 tbsp of butter and add the tomatoes + olives to the Brussels. Continue to roast the rice for 15 minutes + the Brussels for another 10.
At this time, place a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Add the butter. Once melted, add in the garlic, cooking and stirring for 2-3 minutes. Add in the maple, water, and bbq sauce, and bring the mixture to a boil - letting it boil for a minute while stirring consistently. Reduce to a simmer, add in the salmon skin side down, and cook for 5 minutes. Spoon the sauce over the salmon every 30 seconds during the cook time. After 5 minutes, place the cast iron skillet in the oven, and cook for another 5-6 minutes.
If you’ve removed the rice + brussels, place them back in the oven to heat up, and add the feta to the Brussels.
Serve the salmon with parsley sprinkled on top + lemon wedges on the side. Plate the salmon over the rice with Brussels on the side, spooning lots of sauce + a squeeze of lemon over the fish, and you’re set.