So Many Dishes

Friday nights have meant “nice dinner” for Ken and me since we were first married. It would be date night, the evening we were most likely to go out. Even in grad school, when we didn’t have much money, it was still a special time. Ken’s department had what they called “Friday seminar” at 4:00 on Friday afternoons, when professors, grad students, and significant others would gather in the student union on the river (Ohio State had two student union buildings at the time) and begin the weekend with pitchers of 3.2 beer. Once our kids came along, Friday night was grownup time. We’d feed the kids early, put them to bed, and enjoy a late dinner. As they got older, and we couldn’t do that anymore, Friday still meant something special for dinner.

All these years later, it’s a custom Ken and I still observe. Friday is the day we’re most likely to have fresh seafood. There’s almost always wine. With both of us retired, we don’t need to sit and decompress from a busy work week, yet we still generally find ourselves at the table longer than we do other nights.

This week is just a bit different, though. We’re having a group of friends here on Saturday; members of our church music group are joining us to make homemade pierogi. I promise, there will be a post about this all turns out next week. When we planned our weekly menu, we decided to move things around because of the party. Friday dinner will be a main course salad, something we more commonly do on a Saturday. And we decided to have fresh salmon this evening.

I have so many recipes for salmon, but this simple salmon with dill sauce is my go-to method to fix it. Like the pasta I posted a couple days ago, there really isn’t a recipe. I probably started out with an actual recipe, but I have no clue where it was from. Now, it’s just muscle memory.

I always ask to have the salmon fillet skinned when I buy it. You can make this with the skin on, but I prefer skinless. I spray a baking dish (I use one of my old Corningware dishes) with cooking spray, then place a one pound salmon fillet in the dish. I sprinkle the fish with lemon pepper seasoning and lay several fresh dill sprigs atop the fish. Then I put about 1/4 cup water and an equal amount of white wine in the dish, around the fish. You don’t want to cover the fillet; it’s just enough liquid to keep the fish nice and moist. I bake it in a 400 degree oven for about 20 minutes, until the internal temperature is 140 degrees.

While the fish is cooking, I mix chopped fresh dill with 1/2 cup of sour cream. Plain Greek yogurt works fine, too, but Ken prefers the sour cream. Tonight, I used about 3 tablespoons of chopped dill; I just add until it looks good. When the fish is cooked, I serve it with the sour cream sauce and lemon wedges.

A word on the temperature at which the salmon is cooked. According to the USDA, salmon is cooked at an internal temperature of 145 degrees. However, I’ve seen recipes that say to cook to 125 degrees or 130 degrees. That’s too raw for us. I like it at 140, and I have come to rely on my digital instant read thermometer more and more.

Tonight I served steamed asparagus and fresh Italian bread with the fish. It made for a simple, but elegant meal, and an enjoyable evening.

Happy eating!