Serves 4
– 4 x 180g salmon fillets
– 1 tablespoon of grated fresh ginger
– 1/4 cup soy sauce
– 1 tablespoon of sesame oil
– 1 tablespoon of honey (optional)
For the Coconut Spinach
– 1 tablespoon oil
– 2 cloves of garlic, crushed
– 2 chopped red chillies, or 1 teaspoon of dried chili flakes
– 2 tablespoons chili paste * see note
– 100ml coconut cream
– 2 cans chickpeas
– Juice of one lemon or 2 limes
– 2 bunches english spinach, or about 200g baby spinach
Combine the ginger, soy sauce, sesame oil and honey in a shallow bowl. Put the salmon fillets in to marinate for about 20 minutes. You’re probably going to want to turn them occasionally.
Warm the oil in a saucepan over a medium heat, then add the garlic, chillies and chili paste. Cook for a couple of minutes then add the coconut cream and chickpeas. Allow to heat through for 5 minutes, then and the lemon juice. Turn the heat down a bit while you turn your attention to the salmon.
You need a grill plate or heavy based frypan over a high heat. When the pan is good and hot, slurp some oil in and then add the salmon. I like to cook it for about 3 minutes on each side, depending on the quality of the salmon.
A minute or so before the salmon is ready add the spinach to the chickpea mixture and stir until it has just wilted.
To serve, pile the coconut-spinach-chickpeas onto plates and place the salmon on top. Enjoy.
* While the recipe calls for Asian Chili Paste, I have been known to use a few different substitutes when I can’t be arsed dragging myself to a decent Asian grocery store. For example, a tablespoon of minced chillies (the type from a jar), a tablespoon of brown sugar, a splash of fish sauce and some tamarind paste gave damn fine results.