Seared Salmon with Sweet & Sour Californian Prune Sauce and Beetroot Salad

Prune It is a healthy eating campaign designed to educate consumers to understand the role that California Prunes can play in helping to help reduce the fat and sugar content across a wide range of recipes.  When blended into a puree, prunes offer a useful fat replacer in cooking by adding fat-like (but fat-free) characteristics that also work to enhance the flavours in both sweet and savoury dishes.  In addition, the naturally occurring sugars present in California Prunes can also be used to provide a natural replacement for some of the processed sugars that traditionally feature in sweet recipes.  And because of their high fibre content and ability to add bulk to dishes, California Prunes also have a role to play in reducing portion size without compromising on filling power or taste.

Makes: 2Prep Time: 15 minutesCook Time: 1 hour 20 minutes

INGREDIENTS

  •  
  • For the salmon:
  • 260g (2 fillets) fresh salmon
  • A little olive oil
  • Course sea salt (to taste)
  • For the sweet and sour California Prune sauce:
  • 5 California Prunes
  • 1 dsp fresh ginger
  • 3 tbsp light soy sauce
  • 1 tsp sherry vinegar
  • 1/2 tsp sesame oil
  • 2 tbsp rice wine vinegar
  • 1 tbsp California Prune juice
  • For the beetroot salad:
  • 3 raw, medium beetroot
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • Zest of 1 orange
  • Salt
  • 1 clove garlic, crushed

DIRECTIONS

  1. Heat the oven to 180°C. Wrap the beetroot in foil with a little olive oil, half the orange zest, garlic and season.
  2. Put into the oven for around an hour. Test and if not quite cooked put back into the oven for a further few minutes.
  3. Once out of the oven, remove the skin from the beetroot as soon as possible and then allow to cool.
  4. Cut the beetroot into ½ cm dice, mix with olive oil, crushed garlic and the remaining orange zest, and season well.
  5. Make the sweet & sour sauce by adding all the ingredients into a blender and pureeing well. If the consistency is too chunky, put through a fine sieve. Season.
  6. Put a little oil into a non-stick frying pan, fry the salmon skin side down first for about 4 minutes or until the skin is crispy. Turn over and cook for a further 2-3 minutes. Season with course sea salt.

To serve:

Spoon the beetroot onto the plate, and top with the salmon. Add the sweet and sour sauce according to your preference.