Recipe Review: 20-Minute Hoisin Skillet Salmon

Salmon  is constantly touted for its heart healthy omega threes, low calorie, superfood... blah, blah, blah.

To me, it has been my cooking foe.

I've tried grilling it.  I've tried baking it.  I've tried pan frying it.  No matter what, it tastes like overcooked salmon crap.

However,  I have refused to give up on it.

When I found this recipe at foodnetwork.com, I decided to give salmon another go.    The ingredients intrigued me and it sounded like a simple enough recipe! To give myself more pressure, I invited Suzie over for dinner and a workout. Here is how it went:

I did need to make a special trip to Publix, not just for the Salmon fillets but also for hoisin sauce.  I wasn't sure what hoisin sauce was and figure if I didn't know what it was suppose to taste like, I wouldn't know if I was making a homemade recipe correctly.  Anyway, I digress.  The trip to Publix was mostly painless, however Salmon is not the cheapest fish.  I sighed to myself as I bought the fish hoping that this time it would be eaten and not thrown out for tasting like crap.

I added the beans and the hoisin sauce to the pan, chopped up some broccoli and added it to the top.

I nestled the salmon into the pan, and then because I love broccoli, I added some more!

I followed the recipe by letting the sauce come to a simmer and then reduced the heat and put a lid on top.  I was still in denial that a salmon recipe could be so easy.

Cooking note:  I omitted the red pepper flakes because I didn't have any and forgot to buy some!

I waited until the salmon was flakey and cooked through.  For the first time in my salmon cooking career, the salmon resembled something that looked edible!

I love cilantro so I added plenty on top of the salmon!

I was so surprised on how yummy this recipe was.  Normally Salmon is so strong in its fish taste that I force myself to eat it down.  No forcing was needed!  Dave has decided that this is one of those recipes that needs to enter our dinner rotation.


Here is the whole recipe:

20-Minute Hoisin Skillet Salmon

Courtesy of: http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/20-minute-hoisin-skillet-salmon-recipe/index.html

Ingredients

• One 15.5-ounce can low-sodium black beans, drained and rinsed
• 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce
• 1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• 4 cups medium broccoli florets (about 8 ounces)
• Four 5-ounce salmon fillets, skin removed
• Juice of 1/2 lemon
• 2 tablespoons roughly chopped fresh cilantro, optional

Directions

Combine the beans, 3/4 cup water, hoisin sauce, red pepper flakes and garlic in a large skillet. Top with the broccoli, nestle in the salmon and bring to a simmer over medium heat. Once simmering, cover the skillet and cook until the salmon is flaky and just cooked through and the broccoli is crisp-tender, 5 to 6 minutes. Drizzle with lemon juice and sprinkle with cilantro if using. Add salt to taste and serve.

Serves:4; Calories 297; Total Fat 9 grams; Saturated Fat 2 grams; Protein 36 grams; Total Carbohydrates 20 grams; Sugar 3 grams; Fiber 6.5 grams; Cholesterol 64 milligrams; Sodium 529 milligrams

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