I love salmon so much – it’s possibly my favourite fish to cook with and probably the first fish I learned to cook. Salmon With Pancetta, Sweetcorn & Crushed Potatoes is one of my favourite dishes at the moment. It’s so delicious and a great way to enjoy some of the new potatoes that are coming into season. It’s a great recipe to make with baby Jersey Royals if you’re particularly fussed about them – I am and as soon as I saw them in the supermarket, this was the dish I made.
If you can’t find cubed pancetta, don’t worry. Bacon lardons could also work or just any bacon that you chop up yourself. Don’t get too hung up on the measurement here – different brands and styles of pancetta or bacon lardons are sold in varying amounts. You just want something in the ballpark of the amount given for the fat and also the salty flavour. If you have a little more or less it won’t ruin a thing.
Serves 2
Ingredients
- 500g new potatoes
- Salt & pepper
- 80g pancetta cubes
- 2 boneless, skinless salmon fillets
- 100ml white wine
- 200ml chicken or vegetable stock
- 100ml double cream, plus 1-2 tablespoons for the potatoes
- 1 teaspoon dijon mustard
- Small tin of sweetcorn (preferably low sodium)
- 50g unsalted butter
- A small bunch of chives, finely chopped
- A small bunch of dill, finely chopped
- Lemon wedges to serve (optional)
Method
- Halve the new potatoes and boil them in a pan of salted water until tender – usually about 15 to 20 minutes depending on the size of the potato halves.
- While the potatoes are boiling, cook the pancetta in a large dry non-stick frying pan over medium heat. The fat will render as it cooks and it will start to become bronze and crisp. Once the pancetta has a nice colour to it, push it to one side of the pan so you can get on with the salmon. You can also remove it to a plate if your pan isn’t quite big enough or you’re more comfortable doing it that way… Whatever works for you.
- Add the salmon to the pan and cook for about 3 minutes on each side, trying to get a nice bronze colour. It’s not important to cook it through at this stage.
- Once you have both sides of the salmon looking nice and golden, pour in the wine and the stock. Increase the heat to medium-high. Let this bubble away for a few minutes until it’s reduced by about half.
- Reduce the heat back to medium and stir in the double cream, Dijon mustard and sweetcorn. Continue cooking for a few minutes more until the sauce reduces even further and thickens enough to coat the back of a spoon. Season to taste with freshly ground black pepper and once it’s thick enough, keep it warm over a low heat. You could also put the lid on to help it stay warm.
- Once the potatoes are fully cooked, strain them and return them to the pan over a medium-low heat. Allow them to heat up a bit so that any moisture left behind is being cooked off. Add the butter and 1 or 2 tablespoons of double cream and stir it around to help it melt in the hot potatoes.
- When the butter has melted, smash the potatoes using a fork or a potato masher. I actually use a wire skimmer that I have which is quite heavy duty and does the job. You’re not going for a full mashed potatoes vibe here – just crushing them up a bit, skins and all. Make it messy and weird – perfection or uniformity is not what we’re after here. Season to taste with salt & pepper and stir in the chopped chives.
- Spoon half of the crushed potatoes onto each plate. Add a fillet of salmon to each plate also and spoon over the bacon & sweetcorn creamy sauce across the top of both. Finish with a sprinkling of finely chopped fresh dill and serve hot with lemon wedges on the side.
