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Falafel-Crusted Salmon

This recipe interprets a signature dish from Aquagrill, a restaurant in New York City’s SoHo district.

Chef/owner Jeremy Marshall begins with dried chickpeas and simmers them with aromatic vegetables until tender. The chickpeas and other crust ingredients are put through a meat grinder to achieve the texture that the chef is after. For the home cook, canned chickpeas and a food processor simplify the process. You may have some crust mixture left over; freeze extra to use later, or try it on chicken or pork.

Ingredients:

• 1 large cucumber, peeled, seeded and thinly sliced
• 3 plum tomatoes, peeled, seeded, and cut in thin wedges
• 4 salmon fillet pieces (6-7 oz. each), skin and pin bones removed
• 2-3 tsp. vegetable oil

Falafel Crust

• 1 cup cooked, drained chickpeas
• 1/2 medium russet potato, peeled and finely chopped (1/2 cup)
• 1/2 cup coarsely chopped flat-leaf parsley
• 1/2 cup chopped leek and/or green onion
• 4 Tbsp. butter, cut in pieces
• 1/2 cup dried bread crumbs
• 1 tsp. ground coriander
• 1 tsp. ground cumin
• Salt and black pepper

Hummus

• 1 cup cooked, drained chickpeas
• 1/4 cup tahini (sesame seed paste)
• 1/2 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 3 Tbsp. olive oil
• 2-3 cloves garlic, peeled

Lemon Vinaigrette

• 1/3 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice
• 1/2 tsp. grated lemon zest
• 1/2 tsp. sugar
• 1/3 cup olive oil

Cooking Instructions:

For the falafel crust, combine the chickpeas, potato, parsley, leek and/or green onions and butter in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is finely chopped and well mixed. Add the bread crumbs, coriander and cumin and pulse to mix. Add salt and pepper to taste. Transfer to a bowl and set aside.

For the hummus, wipe out the food processor bowl. Add the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, olive oil and garlic. Process until smooth, then season to taste with salt and pepper. Transfer the hummus to a bowl, cover and chill until needed.

Combine the vinaigrette ingredients in a large bowl and whisk to mix. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Add the cucumber and tomato and toss well. Chill until needed.

Preheat the broiler and set the oven rack 4 to 6 inches below the element. Season the salmon fillet pieces with salt and pepper. Heat the oil in a heavy ovenproof skillet, preferably nonstick. When hot, add the salmon and sear until browned, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Spread the top of each fillet piece with some of the falafel crust mixture, transfer the skillet to the oven and broil the salmon until the crust is bubbly and the salmon is cooked to taste, about 2 minutes for medium or 3 to 4 minutes for well done. (If the crust is browned before the salmon is cooked, turn off the broiler, close the oven door and let the salmon sit for a minute or two to continue cooking.)

To serve, spoon some of the hummus onto the center of individual plates and spoon the tomato and cucumber salad around. Set the salmon pieces on the hummus and serve right away.

Servings Per Recipe: 4

Cal. 412 / Total fat 29g / Sat. 11g / Chol. 143mg / Sdm. 198mg / Carbo. 1g / Prot. 34g / Om-3 1/3g