Salmon with Red Wine and Beetroot

By Denise Phillips


This is an unusual mix of ingredients that together produce an exceptionally tasty dish

Red wine and beetroot impart their red dye onto the salmon giving it a both colour and flavour. I tend to make this recipe either as a starter or as part of a buffet selection. It can be enjoyed warm or cold so keep for Yom Tov and Shabbat lunch when you want to give cholent a rest! Beetroot is one of those vegetables that is enjoying a revival and has become popular in salads, soups, roasted and even in risottos. It has numerous health benefits too as it contains betaine, a substance that relaxes the mind and is used to treat depression. It also contains trytophan (also found in chocolate) which contributes to a sense of wellbeing.

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Preparation time: 15 minutes
Cooking time: 1 hour 25 minutes
Serves: 6

Ingredients
2 tbsp olive oil plus extra for brushing
2 red onions, peeled and finely chopped
300g green lentils, rinsed
3 tbsp tomato puree
1 litre hot vegetable stock
2 tbsp fresh parsley, roughly chopped
4 cooked beetroot, roughly chopped
2cm fresh ginger, peeled and finely chopped
6 salmon fillets (150g each), skinned and pin boned
Juice of 1 lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

Red Wine Reduction
400ml red wine
1 onion, peeled and chopped
2 garlic cloves, peeled and roughly chopped
2 bay leaves
6 peppercorns

200g watercress, to serve
400g red cabbage, shredded
100g cherry tomatoes, cut in half
2 lemons, cut into slices

Method
1) Make the red wine reduction. Put all the ingredients in a large wide saucepan over a high heat. Bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes or until it has reduced to about 300 ml. Drain and set aside.
2) In a frying pan, heat the oil until hot. Sauté the red onions and ginger until softened. Add the lentils, tomato puree, stock and red wine reduction. Bring to the boil and simmer for 45 minutes or until the lentils are soft.
3) Add the chopped beetroot together with any juices, parsley and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
4) Preheat the grill to its highest setting.
5) Brush the salmon with olive oil, lemon juice and season with salt and freshly ground black pepper.
6) Grill for 5-7 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish. Remove.

To serve the stylish way: Ladle the lentils on to a large serving plate, flake the salmon into bite size pieces. Stir in the watercess leaves, red cabbage, cherry tomotoes and lemon slices.