Akhtar says: “For this salad, I brine the salmon in a mixture of water, chipotle, and salt, which gives the salmon a warm, umami flavour. After the salmon is brined, I coat it with a rub of black pepper and coriander and then bake it. The result will really take you by surprise; it is so incredibly buttery – and yet there’s no butter or additional fat. I think (and hope) it will forever change the way you make salmon.

“I let it cool and flake it over greens with a roasted apple and chia seed dressing, made with shallots and apples caramelised with dijon and sherry wine vinegar. This is a great salad to serve if friends are coming over for brunch, or for a light weeknight dinner. Open a bottle of white wine and enjoy”.

Serves 4

Ingredients

For the salmon brine:

40g flaky sea salt
2 chipotles in adobo
1 tsp dried oregano, toasted
1 tsp ground allspice, toasted
1 tsp cumin seeds, toasted
1 medium garlic clove
455g skinless salmon, cut into four 115g pieces

For the chia apple dressing:

60ml extra-virgin olive oil
3 medium shallots, thinly sliced
1 apple, peeled and diced
2 tbsp chia seeds
2 tbsp sherry wine vinegar
1 tbsp dijon mustard
flaky sea salt, for seasoning

For the salmon:

2 tbsp black peppercorns, toasted and ground
2 tbsp coriander seeds, toasted and ground
flaky sea salt

For the salad mix:

445g mixed torn lettuces of your choice
5 medium radishes, shaved on a mandoline or sliced into super-thin discs
1 red beet, peeled and shaved on a mandoline or sliced into super-thin discs
½ English cucumber, sliced into coins (I like to partially peel it vertically, leaving some skin on like long stripes)
flaky sea salt

Method

First, brine the salmon. In a large glass bowl, combine the salt, chipotles, oregano, allspice, cumin, and garlic with 480ml of water and whisk to dissolve the salt. Add the salmon fillets and spoon the brine all over. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 150°C. While the salmon is brining, make the dressing. Heat the oil in a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the shallots, and cook, covered, for 4 to 6 minutes, until the shallots are soft but haven’t started to colour.

Stir in the apple, cover, and cook again until soft, about 6 minutes more. Add the chia seeds, vinegar, and mustard, and stir to combine.

Transfer to a blender (or use a handheld immersion blender) and purée for 3 to 4 minutes, scraping down the sides of the blender several times to make sure all the ingredients get fully incorporated. Season with salt. Let cool. (You can pop it in the refrigerator for faster cooling.)

While the dressing is cooling, bake the salmon and assemble the salad ingredients. Remove the salmon from the brine and pat dry. Lay the fillets on a sheet tray or baking pan and sprinkle both sides with the black pepper and coriander. Season with salt. Bake the salmon for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the internal temperature of the salmon is 60°C. Allow the fillets to cool before flaking the salmon.

Next, make the salad. Add the salad greens to a large bowl, toss in the radishes, beet, and cucumber, and season with salt. Add 1 tbsp of the vinaigrette per serving (so 60ml for the entire recipe). This dressing is thick, almost like a caesar dressing, so it’s helpful to use your hands here to really rub the dressing on all the lettuce leaves and other vegetables. Top with the flaked salmon and serve immediately.

From Good for You: Bold Flavours with Benefits by Akhtar Nawab, with Andrea Strong (£21.99, Chronicle Books), out now

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