Cold Poached Salmon With Dill Mustard Sauce

Updated April 24, 2020

Cold Poached Salmon With Dill Mustard Sauce
Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Total Time
30 minutes, plus an hour for cooling
Rating
4(129)
Comments
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The centerpiece of a summer solstice menu created in 2005 for The Times, this dish alludes to gravlax — the Scandinavian dish of cured salmon — with the spices used to poach the salmon and the sweet mustard sauce. The cooking technique here yields the most tender flesh you may ever encounter with salmon.

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Ingredients

Yield:10 to 12 servings

    For Poaching the Salmon

    • 1small bunch fresh dill
    • 1whole salmon (wild, if possible), about 6 pounds, cleaned and scaled (or substitute a center-cut section of a larger salmon)
    • 1tablespoon salt
    • 2tablespoons sugar
    • 2teaspoons yellow mustard seeds
    • 1teaspoon black peppercorns
    • 1onion, peeled and quartered

    For the Sauce

    • 3tablespoons Dijon mustard
    • 2tablespoons light brown sugar
    • 1cup sour cream
    • 3tablespoons white wine vinegar
    • 3tablespoons chopped dill
    • ½teaspoon salt, or as needed

    For Serving

    • 1generous bunch dill
    • 2lemons, cut into wedges
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (12 servings)

134 calories; 8 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 2 grams monounsaturated fat; 2 grams polyunsaturated fat; 7 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram dietary fiber; 5 grams sugars; 8 grams protein; 207 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    To poach salmon, begin by placing the small bunch of dill inside cavity of the salmon, and put salmon in a fish poacher or a large roasting pan. (If necessary remove head to fit salmon in pan.) Cover with water, and add salt, sugar, mustard seeds, peppercorns and onion. Place over high heat, and bring to a boil. Turn salmon over, and cook 10 minutes. Turn off heat, and let salmon cool in water for about an hour.

  2. Step 2

    To make sauce, whisk together the mustard and brown sugar in a small pitcher. Add sour cream and vinegar, and whisk until smooth. Mix in the chopped dill, and season with salt. Cover, and refrigerate until serving.

  3. Step 3

    To serve, remove salmon from poaching liquid and lay on large sheet of parchment or waxed paper. Remove skin from top, gently peeling it away, along with fins. Carefully lift top layer of salmon in one long fillet, removing it from backbone and transferring it to a large platter.

  4. Step 4

    Lift backbone off fish in one piece, and pick out any other visible bones. Turn fish over, and remove skin as before. Then place second fillet alongside the first on platter. Arrange leafy sprigs of dill between fillets, and drizzle sauce on top. Scatter lemon wedges around edges of plate. Pass pitcher of sauce separately.

Ratings

4 out of 5
129 user ratings
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Comments

We used precut salmon and took it out of the water bath after 15 minutes to cool - they were cooked perfectly. The dill sour cream sauce was really good. Substituted dry mustard powder for mustard seed and it still worked.

This recipe brought back warm memories of being a grownup in the 70-80s & learning to cook with the NYT Cookbook. This recipe was a favorite then and was just as good today, with salmon gifted me from neighbors who caught it in the Columbia River. That cookbook eventually fell apart, and now I can find these recipes on my iPad. THANK YOU.

This was amazing!!! Ever since eating this, we have been craving it again, especially the sauce. I was skeptical about leaving the fish in the water for an hour, but the whole dish was delectable.

Delicious recipe although I think the sauce would be better with less mustard

Added lemmon juice to the sauce which made it taste less sweet and quite delicious

Tasted great! Not too difficult. Fish was very tender and flaky.

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