Grilled Dill Sockeye Salmon and Vegetables

This dish is the epitome of simple, healthy, and delicious.  The fresh vegetables from our CSA and excellent quality salmon were elevated with a simple marinade of olive oil, garlic, red wine vinegar, and dill.  The salmon was perfectly cooked – just barely warm in the center and flaky and delicious on the outside.  The dill flavor was subtle but highlighted the freshness of the fish.  The vegetables were tender and mouth-wateringly flavorful, with a hint of acid from the red wine vinegar and a natural sweetness.  We both immensely enjoyed this due to the variety of flavor and texture.

Grilled Dill Sockeye Salmon and Vegetables

Dill Marinated Sockeye Salmon:

1 lb. Copper River sockeye salmon steaks

3 tbs. olive oil

2 tbs. red wine vinegar

2-3 tbs. fresh dill, finely chopped

1 large clove garlic, minced

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

1 lemon, quartered, for garnish

Non-stick cooking spray

Mix together marinade ingredients.  Add fish and let marinate 2-4 hours.

Preheat grill.  Spray grill grate with non-stick cooking spray.

Once vegetables are nearly cooked through (see below), add sockeye salmon to the grill.  Cook 6-7 minutes per side until cooked to desired consistency and temperature.  Serve with grilled vegetables and a lemon wedge.

Grilled Vegetables:

3 garlic scapes, cut into 2-3″ long segments

3 green onions

1/2 zucchini, cut into 3/16″ segements

3-4 tbs. olive oil

1-2 tbs. red wine vinegar

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Preheat grill.

Mix together olive oil, red wine vinegar, kosher salt, and freshly cracked black pepper.  Toss all vegetables in oil and vinegar combination to coat.  Reserve oil and vinegar combination.

Lay out a flat square of tinfoil on your grill.  Add garlic scapes.  Cook, turning and brushing with oil and vinegar mixture frequently, about 15-20 minutes, until tender and cooked through.

Meanwhile, place green onions on a flat square of tinfoil.  Add a tbs. or so of oil and vinegar mixture and form a pouch.  Place on the grill and cook 15-20 minutes, turning a few times, until tender and cooked through.

Place zucchini rounds directly on the grill, careful not to allow them to fall through the grate.  Cook about 10-15 minutes, turning once, until lightly browned and tender.  If necessary, place on top of the onion packet to keep warm and prevent overcooking.¹

Serve directly off the grill.

Sesame-Soy Grilled Salmon and Baby Bok Choy

This meal was elegant, easy, and delicious.  The sesame-soy marinade lent an salty, umami-rich flavor to both the salmon and the baby bok choy.  The baby bok choy picked up a slightly bitter char from the grill that paired really well with the rich, fatty texture of the salmon.  This meal comes together quickly but is incredibly flavorful and delicious.  We like our salmon closer to the rare end, so if you would prefer it to be more well done, leave it on the grill for an extra two minutes per side and remove the bok choy prior to the salmon.

Sesame-Soy Grilled Salmon and Baby Bok Choy

.75 lb. salmon, filleted with skin on, skin lightly scored with a knife

1/4 cup less sodium soy sauce

1 tsp. sesame oil

1 tsp. rice wine vinegar

1/2 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes

Freshly cracked black pepper

2 heads baby bok choy, soaked for half an hour in cold water and dried another half hour or so

2 tbs. butter, melted

Non-stick cooking spray

Whisk together soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine vinegar, crushed red pepper flakes, and freshly cracked black pepper.  Transfer, with the salmon, to a plastic bag and marinate for at least 2 hours.

Preheat grill until very hot.

Transfer marinade to a small bowl and whisk together with melted butter.

Place fish, skin side up, on the grill.  Add baby bok choy.  Brush bok choy and salmon with the butter/sesame-soy combination.  Cook 4-6 minutes.  Flip both fish and bok choy.  Brush again with the butter/sesame-soy combination and cook another 4-6 minutes until bok choy is lightly charred and fish flakes with a fork.

Grilled Pizza – Chipotle Barbecue Chicken and Ham and Eggs Pizza

I think Zak and I have started a summer tradition.  Two weeks ago, we started the process of our first home brewed beer.  That evening we grilled some pizzas.  We cracked open a bottle of our first batch of home brew last night and, while it will certainly benefit from another week of carbonating and developing in the bottling process, it is absolutely delicious.  So delicious that we decided to swing by Warehouse Beverage to grab another ingredient kit.  We spent the afternoon getting everything ready to ferment and the evening grilling some delicious pizzas.

I know, grilled pizza sounds weird at first.  But it totally works and is totally delicious.  And totally necessary if you’re craving a pizza when it’s 80-plus degrees out and you just can’t handle the thought of turning on your (newly fixed) oven.

The first version, pictured above, is a chipotle barbecue chicken, inspired by California Pizza Kitchen‘s version.  Zak isn’t crazy about barbecue chicken pizzas, so we collaborated by making a pizza with some thinly sliced turkey ham and beautiful runny eggs.  Both versions were absolutely delicious.

It’s very important that you have everything laid out and organized prior to putting the first round of dough on the grill because things move very quickly after that point.

Grilled Pizza – Chipotle Barbecue Chicken and Ham and Eggs Pizza

Pizza Dough:

1 1/2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour

2/3 cup semolina flour

3/4 cup water, room temperature

1 tbs. sugar

1 tbs. kosher salt

2 tbs. olive oil

2 tsp. instant dry yeast

Combine all ingredients in bread machine on dough cycle.  Let run one cycle.  Once done kneading, turn off machine and remove dough from the machine.  Divide into as many pizza crusts as you want (we did two).

Knead each segment of dough roughly five minutes.  Let rest under a damp towel for 30 minutes.

Flatten each ball of dough between your hands.  Shape, by turning dough as if you are turning a car wheel, into an oblong circle.

Chipotle Barbecue Sauce:

1/2 tbs. Brummel & Brown

2 tbs. onion, grated

3/4 cup ketchup

2 chipotles in adobo sauce, minced

1 tbs. adobo sauce

1 tbs. brown sugar

2 tbs. molasses

1 tsp. ground yellow mustard

1/2 tbs. fresh lemon juice

1/2 tbs. Worcestershire sauce

1/4 tsp. garlic powder

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

1 tsp. chili powder

In a medium saucepan, heat Brummel & Brown over medium heat until melted.  Add onion and sauté until just beginning to turn yellow.  Add remaining ingredients and simmer 15 minutes.

Chipotle Barbecue Chicken:

1/2 cup leftover roast chicken, shredded

Chipotle Barbecue Sauce (see above)

1 round pizza dough (see above)

1/2 cup red onion, thinly sliced

2 oz. fresh mozzarella, thinly sliced

1/4 cup smoked gouda, shredded

1/4 cup fresh cilantro, roughly chopped

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Add chicken to simmering barbecue sauce (see above).  Simmer 15 minutes to heat through and set aside.

Preheat grill over high heat.

Brush one side of your dough rounds (see above) with plain olive oil.  Flip dough, oiled side down, onto the middle of your grill rack.  Brush the top side with plain olive oil.  Cook, uncovered, until underside is golden brown, about 2-3 minutes on a gas grill or slightly longer on a charcoal grill.

Flip crust over with tongs and spatula (or a pizza peel).  Quickly brush 3-4 tbs. of chipotle barbecue sauce on the pizza.  Top with cheese, chicken, and red onions.  Season with kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper.  Close grill top and cook until underside is golden brown and cheese is beginning to melt, about 3 minutes on a gas grill or slightly longer on a charcoal grill.  Remove from grill and let rest a few minutes.  Top with cilantro and serve.

Ham and Eggs:

Non-stick cooking spray

2 eggs

1 tbs. olive oil

3 slices turkey ham, sliced very thin

1 oz. Parmesan cheese, finely shredded

Kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper

Spray a non-stick skillet with non-stick cooking spray.  Crack eggs onto skillet and cook until whites are just set, about 2-3 minutes.  Transfer to a plate and set aside.

Preheat grill over high heat.

Brush one side of your dough rounds (see above) with plain olive oil.  Flip dough, oiled side down, onto the middle of your grill rack.  Brush the top side with plain olive oil.  Cook, uncovered, until underside is golden brown, about 2-3 minutes on a gas grill or slightly longer on a charcoal grill.

Flip crust over with tongs and spatula (or a pizza peel).  Quickly brush the other side of the pizza with olive oil.  Top with Parmesan, turkey ham, and eggs.  Season with kosher salt and freshly cracked black pepper.  Cook until underside is golden brown and cheese is beginning to melt, about 3 minutes on a gas grill or slightly longer on a charcoal grill.  Remove from grill and let rest a few minutes before cutting and eating.