Perfect together.

Growing up we had several different herbs in our back garden – parsley, marjoram and dill. Mum often dill to pickle her own gherkins from the cucumbers dad grew also in the garden. She also used it to make a creamy sauce with green beans. I personally love dill with seafood. That’s why this poached salmon recipe with creamy dill sauce resonates with me.

Dill is a very aromatic herb with pretty delicate-looking leaves. It’s a herb that I find underutilised by cooks but one that complements seafood and some vegetables beautifully.

Preparing your salmon fillets

Where possible, choose fillets that are as even in thickness as you can find as they will cook more evenly. If you can only get the pieces with one thick end and one really thin end, don’t worry. The thin part is the salmon belly flap which is fatty. This part of the salmon can withstand extra cooking and still remain juicy and delicious.

Removing the tiny bones in fish is called pin-boning. The tiny bones are ones that poke out around the middle of the fillet. To check for bones, just run your fingers along the flesh surface and the sides of the fillet. You’ll feel if there are any bones inside. Use fish boning tweezers (or even personal grooming tweezers) to pull them out. It can take time to do this but worth the extra effort. Eating salmon with these bones can be unpleasant.

Removing the skin isn’t hard to do. At the corner end of the salmon fillet, place a sharp knife (any size you are comfortable with) between the skin and the flesh. Angle the knife down toward the skin, and slowly slide the knife between the skin and the flesh. Once you’ve cut through about an inch, you can turn the knife so it’s parallel to the cutting board. Grip the skin for leverage, and slide the knife along the skin. This will help keep as much of the fish intact as possible. You shouldn’t see much of the meat coming off with the skin. (source: Taste of Home)

Poaching Salmon

Pan-frying salmon can splatter everywhere and you then have to deal with the mess afterwards. I love pan-fried salmon but poaching is simpler with less mess to deal with. Plus, if you’re not a fan of salmon skin, you remove this before poaching.

The photo below has the skin removed after cooking with the sauce added on top.

So why this creamy dill sauce?

Firstly, dill and salmon go together like a hand inside a glove. They complement each other really well. This creamy dill sauce is tangy, full of flavour but without overpowering the delicateness of the salmon.

It’s also a no-cook sauce so you literally just need to mix together all the ingredients before use. This is what makes this sauce so easy to make. If you’ve read a couple of my recipes you’ll realise I like to make things that are quick and easy. After all, I’m a working mum with little available spare time.

Poached Salmon with Creamy Dill Sauce

The creamy dill sauce is what makes the salmon shine. It is tangy and full of flavour without overpowering the delicate flavour of the salmon. Quick and easy, this is a meal you can whip up in no time making it perfect for when you're entertaining.

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Prep Time 20 minutes mins

Cook Time 10 minutes mins

Total Time 1 hour hr 30 minutes mins

Servings 4 people

Ingredients

 

• 1 cup water
• 1 cup white wine
• 3 cloves garlic, crushed
• 1 tablespoon whole black pepper corns
• 4 salmon fillets, pin boned and skin removed

DILL SAUCE:

• ⅓ cup sour cream
• ⅓ cup mayonnaise
• 1 tablespoon onion, finely chopped
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 1 teaspoon horseradish cream
• 1½ teaspoon dill, stalks removed & finely chopped
• 2 cloves garlic, crushed
• salt & pepper to taste

Instructions

 

Salmon

• Season the salmon fillets with salt.
• In a shallow frying pan over medium heat, bring wine, water, garlic cloves and pepper corns to a boil, then reduce heat to a simmer. Add salmon fillets and let simmer, covered for 10 minutes or until cooked through. Remove salmon carefully to serve.

Sauce

• Combine the sauce ingredients together until smooth.
• Serve the sauce on top of the salmon.

Notes

• You can freeze salmon, ocean trout or other oily fish for up to 3 months.
• Wrap fish in freezer paper, freezer bags or heavy-duty foil before freezing.