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Italian Poached Salmon

Poached salmon fillets simmered in a wine, tomato paste, and caper sauce, seasoned with herbs and lemon pepper.

From the Wikibooks Cookbook · 12 ingredients
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Why it works: Tomato and olive are a kitchen classic. They rank in the top 1% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 15,539 recipes. Both carry 3-hexenal, which smells apple, fruity. The science ↓

Italian Poached Salmon

Ingredients

Directions

Prepare the sauce

  1. Combine wine, tomato paste, and capers. Set aside.

  2. Heat 1 tbsp oil over medium-high heat in a large skillet. Add garlic and cook until golden.

  3. Add wine mixture to garlic. Reduce temperature to 145°F and keep at 145°F.

Prepare the salmon

  1. Rub salmon with remaining oil. Press seasonings into meat. Dredge all sides in flour. Set aside.

  2. Heat a nonstick skillet over high heat. Add 2 filets, skin side up, and cook until browned on all sides. Repeat with remaining salmon.

Finish and serve

  1. Move salmon to 145°F wine mixture. Cook until fish is pink throughout and flakes easily when tested with a fork.

  2. Serve immediately.

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

861Calories
35 gProtein
28 gFat
109 gCarbs
What these numbers assume: 12 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Flour1 cup (125g) all-purpose455
Salmon100g cooked208
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Wine2 tbsp cooking wine (30ml)25
Tomato1 medium (123g)22
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Garlic1 clove (3g)4
Rosemary1 tsp dried (1.2g)4
Thyme1 tsp dried (1.4g)4
Capers1 tbsp (9g) drained2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0

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 Wikibooks Cookbook.

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. Tomato + olivetop 1% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together15,539 recipes

    Shared aroma: 3-hexenal (apple, fruity).

  2. Olive + garlictop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together25,665 recipes

    Shared aroma: linalool (floral, citrus).

  3. Capers + olivetop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,688 recipes

    Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

  4. Tomato + garlictop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together14,076 recipes

    Shared aroma: furaneol (caramel, strawberry).

  5. Capers + garlictop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together834 recipes

    Shared aroma: coumarin (sweet, hay).

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

What each ingredient does

Salmon filets
Forms the main protein, which firms and turns opaque as it cooks.
Red wine
Provides acidity and liquid for the sauce, adding depth as it reduces.
Tomato paste
Adds concentrated savory flavor and body to the sauce.
Flour
Dries the surface of the fish so it browns and helps the seasonings stick.
Garlic
Adds aroma and savory flavor when cooked in oil until golden.

The step that matters

Holding the wine mixture at 145°F. Fish cooked above this temperature can dry out and toughen, since proteins tighten as they heat. Keeping the sauce at a steady, gentle heat lets the salmon cook through without overcooking the outside.

Swap the capers

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (salmon, red wine, tomato, pepper, flour, olive, garlic):

  1. Thymefits better
  2. Basilfits about as well
  3. Rosemaryfits about as well
  4. Capersthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against salmon, red wine, tomato, pepper, flour, olive, garlic. 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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