Salmon Surprise

Husband was really excited about this dish. He made up the recipe (hence the surprise) and was very pleased with the outcome. While I am not the biggest fan of salmon, this was pretty good.



Edit from Husband: Here, at last, is the actual recipe, if anyone's interested. I didn't really make it up, though. This recipe, or some variant of it, shows up all the time in kitchens everywhere on the west coast.

What you need:

- Aluminum foil
- A 9x13 pan
- Salmon steak
- 1 red and 1 green bell pepper
- 1 red onion
- salt, pepper, balsamic vinaigrette

What you do with it:

Roll out the foil to about one and a half times the length of the fish. Place the foil in the casserole pan, turning the sides up and crumpling the edges a little (this is for later). The fish then goes in the pan on top of the foil, scales side down.
Chop the vegetables however you like and add them to the pan, with some on top of the fish and some on the sides. Add a generous helping of the vinaigrette on top of all this (it's hard to put too much), and then add salt and pepper to taste.
Roll out another length of foil, this time just a bit longer than the pan. Fold the edges of this piece into the edges of the one underneath, like a foil dinner if you've ever done one of those.

At this point it goes into the oven at 375 degrees F for about 45-50 minutes. You can also do it on an outdoor grill, of course, but then the time varies slightly and you'll have to probably check it a few times. It's done when the onions are translucent and the fish easily flakes when pressed with a fork.

Substitutions/additions:
You can add spices, like chili powder, cumin (to be used judiciously), or powdered habanero if you're feeling daring. Italian dressing is a good substitute for the balsamic, depending on what you prefer.
Brown rice and spinach salad on the side complete the experience nicely. Spinach salad like we do it in California could easily merit a whole post by itself.
If salmon is too strong for your taste or too expensive in your area, almost any type of whitefish will work just as well. In any case, fresh is better than frozen (if you can get it). Also, please remember to brush and floss every day, look both ways before crossing the street, and wear your boots in the rain. Finally, it's better to understand a few things than to misunderstand many things. More sage advice next time.