Almost Aunt Sandy’s Sweet and Sour Salmon

Name: Almost Aunt Sandy’s Sweet and Sour Salmon
Total time: 40 min
Yield: 8 appetizer servings
Ingredients: 6 cups fish broth; 3 garlic cloves, smashed and peeled; 1 bay leaf; Salt; freshly ground black pepper, to taste; 1 small red onion, thinly sliced; 1/2 bunch thyme; 8 center-cut skin-on wild salmon fillets, 3 ounces each; 1/2 cup golden raisins; 1 small lemon, thinly sliced; 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar; 2 tablespoons light brown sugar; Challah, for serving

By Melissa Clark

Total Time: About 40 minutes
Rating: 4(198)
Comments: Read comments

All my other relatives served gefilte fish at holiday meals, but not Aunt Sandy. Instead of breaking the fast on Yom Kippur with gefilte fish, kugel and bagels and lox, she made potage Parmentier, pesto pasta salad and, her masterpiece, sweet and sour fish in a shimmering aspic.

In my version, I reduced sugar and substituted balsamic for the sharper wine vinegar. I added raisins and sliced lemons, an idea stolen from a similar recipe I found online. I eliminated the peppercorns, which were unpleasant to crunch, adding aromatic thyme instead.

Finally, because I didn’t want aspic, I substituted prepared fish broth for the mess of boiling bones. The broth was light and refreshing with a gentle acidity that was balanced by the sweetness of the raisins. And the fish was succulent and rich and suffused with flavor.

Featured in: Reinventing a Childhood Memory

or to save this recipe.
Subscriber benefit: give recipes to anyone
As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.
Subscribe
Share
Print Options
Include recipe photo

Ingredients

Yield:8 appetizer servings

6cups fish broth
3garlic cloves, smashed and peeled
1bay leaf
Salt
freshly ground black pepper, to taste
1small red onion, thinly sliced
½bunch thyme
8center-cut skin-on wild salmon fillets, 3 ounces each
½cup golden raisins
1small lemon, thinly sliced
¼cup balsamic vinegar
2tablespoons light brown sugar
Challah, for serving

Ingredient Substitution Guide

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.

Preparation

Step 1
Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large pot, simmer fish broth with garlic, bay leaf and salt for 15 minutes.
Step 2
In a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, scatter red onion and half of the thyme. Place salmon on top, skin side down, and season with salt and pepper. Scatter remaining thyme, raisins and lemon on top.
Step 3
Stir vinegar and sugar into broth and let simmer for 1 minute to dissolve sugar. Remove garlic and bay leaf from broth; carefully pour broth over fish. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until fish is just cooked through to taste. Serve hot, warm or cold, with challah for dipping into broth.

Ratings

4 out of 5

198 user ratings

Have you cooked this?

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Comments

John7 years ago

Anytime you prepare a shrimp dish, you can put the shells in a pot of boiling salted water (1-2 quarts depending on the strength you want) and in just a few minutes you will have a perfectly serviceable "fish broth". Freeze for future uses.

Anne-Marie7 years ago

Kitchen Basics has a seafood stock. I find it at Whole Foods.

Linda Newman7 years ago

Love the combinations of flavors. Worth buying the golden raisins. Fabulous sauce, I served it with brown rice. This recipe is a keeper. thank you.

Jon8 months ago

Made this as written except for vegetable broth instead of fish broth. Served with brown rice and a simple tomato/red onion salad. Excellent and very easy. Saving this one.

john m1 year ago

I don’t know what I was expecting, but it was not this. It was way way too much broth. The flavor was nothing special although I did use fresh organic thyme. Two out of five stars.

Glen1 year ago

What is fish broth and can a kosher version be purchased? If not, is there a recipe or substitute?

Private comments are only visible to you.