Miso & Maple Glazed Salmon
I love my NY Times Cooking Subscription. The emails start my digestive juices flowing even though I just fixed a massive family breakfast. I sit down and see what is inspiring the food writers or which seasonal dish jumps off the screen and take a few minutes to see if I can turn my pantry into the goodness I’m salivating over.
It shocked me when they put out a disclaimer last year that they would start crediting the chefs for their dishes instead of the writers. Umm what? How did it take this long to come to that decision? You’re journalists! Sourcing information is kinda part of the job so why wouldn’t you give credit where credit is due. Most of my dishes are born from looking at recipes and techniques, deciding what I like or don’t like and giving it a shot with ingredients I can source locally or have on hand. I have been lucky to pick up tricks of the trade from my experience in the restaurant industry but mostly being surrounded by some of the most talented and passionate home cooks. As the saying goes “ Imitation is the greatest form of flattery.” But give credit where it is due otherwise it’s thievery.
I adapted this recipe from Colu Henry from the NY Times and it was a bit flawed to begin with. I think the deadline for “Sheet Pan Dinners” may have overlooked that you can’t roast green beans in 12 minutes unless you were planning on them tasting raw. In this case I started by roasting sweet potatoes while par steaming the green beans and then added the salmon at the end. Slightly more work and an extra dish to wash, but worth it. You can serve over rice or as is. The littles love this dish, especially the green beans as they pick up flavors from the sweet potato and the salmon glaze.
Miso Maple Glazed Salmon
Prep Time: 15 min Cook Time : 40 min Servings : 4 (but we split fillets and stretch it to 6 with kids)
4 medium sweet potatoes
4 6 ounce fillets of Salmon washed and pat dry
4 teaspoons maple syrup
1 tablespoon miso (white or brown)
1 tablespoon rice wine vinegar
2 teaspoons soy sauce
1 crushed garlic clove or 1/2 teaspoon of granulated garlic
Dash red pepper flakes (optional)
Sliced Almonds (optional)
Lime wedge (optional)
Rice for serving (optional)
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Peel potatoes and cut into coins or thick wedges. Arrange around edge of sheet pan.
Combine maple syrup, miso, vinegar, soy sauce, garlic and if the kids are out I like a dash of red pepper flakes. Brush Salmon to lightly marinate while the potatoes cook.
Brush Sweet Potatoes and bake for 25 minutes. Don’t forget to set the timer. While they bake steam green beans 5 minutes or blanch them in boiling water for 2 minutes. If the idea of this extra steps bugs you then go with a zucchini or yellow squash which you can throw in the pan with the salmon and will cook up easily in 12 minutes.
After the timer goes off, add the salmon fillets and sprinkle green beans around the fish and sweet potato. Brush with remaining marinade and put back in the oven for 12 minutes. I like to sprinkle with sliced almonds with about three minutes left to cook.
Garnish with a lime wedge for a little kick of acid and watch it disappear. Sweet, savory, umami deliciousness.
