Salmon with Toasted Hazelnut Herb Butter
Wild Salmon and hazelnuts are both local ingredients to the Pacific Northwest so it makes sense to make a dinner using them both! Add a little butter and herbs and it's amazingly delicious!
Ingredients
- 1½ pounds wild salmon cut into 4 fillets
- Salt and pepper for seasoning
- ½ cup butter (8 Tablespoons, 1 stick, 4 ounces -- all the same thing) softened
- ½ cup hazelnuts (2 ounces) toasted (See notes)
- 1 Tablespoon fresh chives chopped
- zest of one lemon
- Lemon wedges for serving
Instructions
- Pull the pin bones out of the salmon and season with salt and pepper.
- When the toasted hazelnuts have cooled, put them in a food processor or the jar of a blender and pulse until finely ground. Mix them with the softened butter, lemon zest, and chopped chives.
- Press the toasted hazelnut herb butter onto the salmon. I say "press" because "spreading" it doesn't work! The slickness of the salmon and the fattiness of the butter just don't mix well.
- Preheat a skillet over medium heat, then lay the salmon fillets in butter side down. Let them cook about 5 minutes, then using a fish spatula, turn them over to the skin side. Let them cook for 3-5 minutes longer or until the internal temperature is about 140°F. This time will vary depending on how thick the fillets are.
- Serve with more hazelnut herb butter on the fillets and some lemon wedges.
Notes
To toast the hazelnuts, put them in a dry skillet over medium to medium-high heat. Keep them moving around by stirring or swirling the skillet so that they don't burn. They only need 3-5 minutes. Set them aside to cool.
The toasted hazelnut herb butter can be made ahead and refrigerated for up to a week or wrapped and frozen for up to 3 months.