Poached Salmon with Hollandaise Sauce
Updated February 23, 2016 
Fresh garden peas with butter and a sprinkling of mint are a traditional accompaniment to this festive dish. Sweet snap peas are a simple vegetable to serve. Remove the stems, cook until tender and toss with melted butter, salt, and freshly milled pepper. Culls are the tiny potatoes left behind in the fields after harvesting. Some farmers grow tiny potatoes the size of shooting marbles such as these. They should be cooked in their skins until tender, a matter of 5 minutes after the water comes to a boil. Serve with melted sweet butter, kosher salt, a little chopped dill, and grated lemon zest.
Serves6 to 8
Cooking Methodpoaching
CostSplurge
Total Timeunder 2 hours
Make Ahead RecipeYes
Kid FriendlyYes
One Pot MealYes
OccasionBuffet
Recipe Coursemain course
Five Ingredients or LessYes
Taste and Textureherby, savory
Ingredients
- 1 whole salmon (5 to 6 pounds), gutted, gills removed with head and tail intact
- 2 sprigs fresh tarragon
- Court bouillon, (double the recipe but do not use double quantity of wine)
- Vegetables (see headnote)
- Hollandaise sauce, for serving
- Fish poacher large enough to hold the fish comfortably
Instructions
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Wash the fish thoroughly and place the tarragon in the cavity. Wrap the fish tightly in lengths of plastic wrap.
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Place the fish in a poacher, add the court bouillon and enough water to cover. When the liquid begins to bubble, reduce the heat to low and simmer slowly for 20 to 25 minutes. Remove from the heat and allow the fish to cool.
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Remove the fish to a platter and carefully remove the plastic wrap.
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Peel away the skin and dark flesh to reveal the salmon flesh. Blot away excess juices. Arrange the vegetables on either side of the fish and serve with Hollandaise Sauce.
Christopher Idone
