Salmon Veracruz

Summer is coming and there is something about summer that says chips and salsa. This dish is a perfect main course to follow the chips and salsa because it keeps the tomatoes, onions and peppers in play. It comes together super quickly and can be served on a bed of pasta, rice or with a tortilla.

Veracruz was one of the first places the Spanish settled in Mexico which explains why this style of preparation has a Mediterranean flair. Pescado A La Veracruzana means fish prepared in the Veracruz style which has a tomato sauce with olives and capers. If you have been in the kitchen a while, you know that most recipes have variations, yet retain the same name. This is one of those — I opted to omit the capers and olives, and keep the name. I have also opted for Anaheim peppers, which are mild but have a teeny tiny little kick beyond the standard bell pepper. If you are a fan of a little spice, I suggest adding a jalapeno along with the anaheim pepper. Speaking of flavor, I always opt for the fire roasted tomatoes over the standard canned tomatoes because the extra flavor is worth the extra few cents that the upgrade will cost.

 

 

Salmon Veracruz Recipe
Serves 4

 

 

 

Directions

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

If you are serving this with pasta or rice, get that going because the following steps only take about 15 minutes.

Season the wild salmon on both sides with salt and black pepper.

In a large oven safe skillet, heat 1 tablespoon of the olive oil over medium-high heat. Sear the wild salmon on each side, about 2 minutes per side. Remove from pan and set aside.

In the same pan, heat the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add the onion and garlic and cook until the onion is translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the tomatoes, peppers and oregano to the pan, and bring to a boil. Reduce the heat to medium, cover and let the sauce simmer until the peppers soften, about 6 minutes.

Nestle the fish in the sauce, so that it is mostly covered by the sauce. Bake until the fish is heated through and the fish flakes easily, about 5-8 minutes (be sure not to overcook the salmon). Remove the pan from the oven, and serve with your choice of carbs.

 

AUTHOR PROFILE

Nancy Ingersoll is a recipe developer and food photographer in San Diego, California. Always up for adventure, she learned the art of sauces and soufflés from one of James Beard Award winner Roy’s Yamaguchi’s executive chefs, and her curious spirit has been fed with cooking classes domestically and abroad. Nancy is also known as The Creative Resource and you can find her work on nancyingersoll.com and on instagram as @thecreativeresource.