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Salad

Blackened Salmon Salad

A salad of blackened salmon topped with avocado chile sorbet and Buddha’s Hand citron vinaigrette, served on farm-fresh greens.

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Why it works: Thyme and oregano match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 791 recipes. Both carry beta-phellandrene, which smells minty, terpene. The science ↓

Blackened Salmon Salad

Time2-3 minutes

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the seasonings

  1. Mix Cajun Spice Seasoning together.

  2. Store in sealed jar in cool, dry place.

  3. To use, pour into pan or serving bowl to dip fish into.

  4. Combine avocado, chiles, simple syrup, lime juice and tequila.

  5. Freeze in an ice cream machine according to machine directions.

  6. Combine shallot, honey, vinegar, and mustard in a blender and mix well. With blender running, slowly pour in olive oil until well-blended.

  7. Add salt and pepper to taste with Buddha's Hand citron zest.

Cook and serve

  1. Heat a large cast-iron frying pan to very hot.

  2. Dip six to eight salmon filets in drawn butter. Cover both sides of salmon filets with Cajun seasoning.

  3. Put salmon in hot frying pan. Cook 2-3 minutes to desired doneness.

  4. Toss farm-fresh greens with Buddha's Hand Citron Vinaigrette and put on a plate.

  5. Place Blackened Salmon on top of greens. Spoon one small scoop of sorbet on top of fish.

  6. Garnish with shredded carrots, diced tomatoes, chow mein noodles, or thinly-sliced fried tortilla strips.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

937Calories
27 gProtein
61 gFat
79 gCarbs

Counts 18 of 21 ingredients. The other 3 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 18 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Avocado1 medium (150g)240
Salmon100g cooked208
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Butter1 tbsp (14g)102
Honey1 tbsp (21g)64
Orange1 medium (131g)62
Sugar1 tbsp (12.5g) granulated49
Onion1 medium (110g)44
Limejuice of 1 lime (44ml)11
Shallot1 tbsp minced (10g)7
Cayenne1 tsp (1.8g)6
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Oregano1 tsp dried (1.8g)5
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Thyme1 tsp dried (1.4g)4
Vinegar1 tbsp (15ml) distilled3
Mustard1 tsp (5g) yellow3
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Syrupnot in our table0
Waternot in our table0
Saladnot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

Recipe from the Recipes Wiki (Fandom).

Steps grouped into stages for easier reading; the method is the source's own.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Thyme + oreganotop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together791 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  2. Garlic + oniontop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together29,058 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  3. Garlic + oreganotop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together3,756 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Pepper + thymetop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together11,585 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  5. Garlic + thymetop 4% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,608 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

What each ingredient does

Salmon filets
Provides the main protein; the spice crust cooks onto its surface while the inside stays moist.
Olive oil
Forms the emulsified body of the vinaigrette, giving it a smooth, rich texture.
Avocado
Gives the sorbet its creamy, fat-rich texture, which stays smooth when frozen.
Orange honey
Adds sweetness that balances the sharpness of the rice vinegar and mustard.
Dijon mustard
Acts as an emulsifier that helps hold the oil and vinegar together in the vinaigrette.
Paprika
Adds color and a mild sweet-smoky flavor to the blackened crust.

The step that matters

Heat a large cast-iron frying pan to very hot. A very hot, dry pan sears the spiced surface quickly, creating a browned crust before the inside overcooks. A cool pan steams the fish and can scorch the spices instead.

Swap the avocado

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, garlic, onion, thyme, oregano, syrup, sugar):

  1. Lemonfits better
  2. Limefits better
  3. Cherryfits about as well
  4. Avocadothe original

Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, garlic, onion, thyme, oregano, syrup, sugar. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.

“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.

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