Salmon en croûte with watercress, lemon and tarragon butter
(from Elyce123’s recipe box)
Source: delicious. December 2005
Prep time: 30 minutes
Cook time: 40 minutes
Serves 4 people
Categories: December, can be frozen
Ingredients
- 4 x 175g thick salmon fillets, skinned
- 125g unsalted butter, softened
- 25g watercress leaves
- finely grated zest of 1/2 lemon plus 1 tbsp lemon juice
- 1 heaped tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
- 1.5 tsp finely chopped fresh chives
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 500g block chilled puff pastry
- flour, for dusting
- 1 medium egg, beaten
Directions
- Season the salmon. Put the butter, watercress, lemon zest and juice, herbs and salt into a food processor, and whizz briefly to form a paste.
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Cut the pastry into 4. On a lightly floured surface, roll each piece out to a rectangle of about 17 × 23cm. Put each fillet to 1 side of each rectangle. Divide the herb butter into 4, then put 1 on top of each fillet. Brush the pastry edges with some egg, then fold the other side of the pastry over the butter and salmon. Seal the edges with a fork and, using a sharp knife, make 3 slits in the top of each parcel.
- Place the parcels side by side on a tray, spaced apart. Open-freeze for 4 hours, until firm. Remove and put in a container with a lid, separating with greaseproof paper if necessary. Cover, label and freeze until needed (up to 1 month).
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To cook, preheat the oven to 200˚C/fan 180˚C/gas 6. Brush the parcels with egg and bake from frozen for 35-40 minutes, until the pastry is crisp and golden and just cooked through. Serve with new potatoes and sugar snap peas, or a dressed green salad.