Mom & Dad o' Britomart's Cedar-Planked Salmon w/ Dijon Sauce

Okay, as anyone in the Hizzy knows, I'm quite insanely enthusiastic about my love for mustard. That said, though, the concept of "mustard sauce" on fish was, well, something I was skeptical about. Until my mother fed this to me. It's divine. It's one of my favorite dishes & one I've been known to beg for on visits home. And it's not super-mustardy, if you're imagining salmon just covered in mustard. My brother, for example, really doesn't like mustard (he's a part of the ketchup hegemony) and loves this dish. So, try it! You won't be sorry. Though, if you don't like salmon, yeah, this probably isn't for you. Oh, and the cedar planking is optional - it's much better prepared this way, but I have skipped that before & still enjoyed. More detail on that below.

• 1/2 C olive oil
• 4 TBSP dijon
• 2 TBSP mustard seeds
• 2 tsp cumin
• 1/2 tsp of red pepper flakes (or to taste)
• 2 TBSP of lemon juice
• wee bit of orange juice to thin it out a bit if the sauce is too thick, it should be a little runny This is an exact quote from my mom, including the "wee." ;)
  

To make the salmon - you're supposed to grill it over a cedar plank. You could just grill the fish sans cedar, but the cedar plank thing is divine & adds the most wonderful & subtle flavor to the salmon. If you're like me and don't have a grill, see below for oven directions.

You can get your cedar plank at a couple places. Williams Sonoma has very, very nice cedar planks, but they're a little pricier. Alternatively (and this is what my parents did for years before swank foodie stores started carrying cedar planks), you can purchase untreated cedar shingles at your local home improvement store, Home Depot, Hechingers, what have you. The untreated part is mucho important. Throw away any of the planks that are too thin at the ends or are too short for a piece of salmon. My dad says that you'll still end up with 20-30 usable planks for about $5, as opposed to Williams Sonoma's 4 planks for about $15.

Then you must prepare cedar plank with vegetable oil - some people soak it for awhile. Some people just rub them generously with oil. That method, though, will result in the cedar charring quite a bit during the grilling process, and you'll have to keep a close eye on them, lest they burst into flame & destroy your yummy meal. (That's very unlikely, by the way, but you know me & my love of melodrama. Still, probably better to soak.)

Anyway, prepare your plank as you see fit, place salmon on plank, then cover with yummy sauce. Grill for about 15 minutes depending on thickness (My dad says he grills for about 15 minutes for a piece of salmon that is an inch thick at its thickest point.)

If you're like me, and don't have a grill & are stuck using an oven, you can still do this! Prepare the cedar plank in the same way, then put plank in baking dish in a cold oven, and then preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Once preheated, remove dish, place salmon on plank, then cover with the sauce. Use the official Canadian Cooking theory to determine how long to cook: measure fish at thickest point, then 10 minutes per inch. I did not know of this Canadian Cooking theory until my father enlightened me this afternoon. Go Canada! As all ovens are not equally calibrated, though, I would periodically check the salmon. I prefer salmon closer to medium/medium rare anyway, but even if you don't, there's nothing worse than overcooked salmon. ::shudders at the thought::

All this having been said, I did make this for myself years ago, and lacking a grill, and too lazy to do the cedar plank thing, I just made it in the oven. It wasn't quite as good, but still ridiculously delicious.

Optional serving idea: This dish is wonderful served over sauteed red cabbage. Here's what to do if you're interested.

Slice up a bunch of red cabbage, you want thinnish ribbons of red cabbage. Or, you know, just chop it up into bite-ish sized pieces. Then, put some olive oil, a couple tablespoons, into a pan over medium heat. Sautee the cabbage until it's tender (and maybe a little sentimental), towards the end, sprinkle liberally with some balsamic vinegar. Stir it in well, cook for another few minutes, arrange on a plate & artistically place you salmon on top of its comfy bed of cabbage.