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Pan Seared Salmon with Lemon Butter Sauce

Ingredients

  • 2 6 oz salmon fillets, skin on (about 1-inch thick)
  • Salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tsp olive oil
  • 2 garlic cloves minced
  • 2 tablespoons finely minced shallot
  • 1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
  • 1/4 cup unsalted butter cubed into pieces
  • 1/2 tsp honey
  • 2 Tbsp minced fresh parsley or tarragon
  • Lemon thinly sliced for garnish (optional)

Instructions

  • Remove salmon fillets from refrigerator, pat bone dry, then return to the refrigerator skin side up, uncovered
  • While the fish is drying out in the fridge, prepare the garlic lemon butter sauce. In a small saucepan, melt 1 tsp butter over medium heat.
  • Sweat finely minced shallot until translucent. Add garlic and saute until very lightly golden brown, an additional 1 - 2 minutes. Add honey and lemon juice, stirring until it has reduced by a third. Add in butter, a little at a time, adding the next chunk as the previous one is just about to finish melting. Reserve.
  • Retrieve salmon from the fridge, and dry again with paper towels, then season with salt and pepper.
  • In a second pan, add olive oil and coat the pan. Place cold fish into cold pan, skin-side down, and then turn the heat to high
  • In the first two minutes that the pan is heating up, keep a spatula pressed firmly over the fish. This will keep the edges from curling up. cook about 4 minutes on the first side until golden brown on bottom then flip and cook salmon on opposite side until salmon has cooked through, about 2 - 3 minutes longer.
  •  At this point, 90% of the fish has cooked through. Use the residual heat in the pan to finish off the filet for about a minute.
  • While the salmon is coasting to temp, return your butter sauce to the heat to VERY BRIEFLY warm it (do not bring it to a simmer or the butter sauce will break and you'll be left with a greasy mess). Stir in parsley.
  • Plate your salmon on a preheated plate, pour the butter sauce over the top of the crispy skin, and garnish with thinly sliced and additional fresh herbs.