Salmon Aspic Recipes

WHOLE POACHED SALMON IN ASPIC WITH CITRUS AND WILD FENNEL

Steps:

• Make court-bouillon by combining 5 quarts water, 2 1/2 cups wine, bay leaves, celery, onions, carrots, parsley, peppercorns, salt, and lemons in a large fish poacher with rack in, at least 24 inches long and 4 1/2 inches deep. Cover; bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer; cook 30 minutes. Turn off heat, and let cool for 15 minutes.
• Cut a length of cheesecloth into three 34-by-18-inch pieces, and overlap them to create a 30-by-34-inch-wide piece of cheesecloth. Rinse salmon with cool running water; pat dry. Wrap salmon in cheesecloth, tying the ends closed with kitchen twine, and tying loosely once around the middle. Using ends as handles, place salmon into poacher, and add enough water to just cover salmon.
• Cover; bring to bare simmer over medium heat. Poach salmon 30 minutes. Lift rack enough so fish is slightly raised out of water; poke an instant-read thermometer into back of widest part of fish. Salmon is done when internal temperature reads 135 degrees, which may take up to 1 hour. Turn off heat; let stand in poacher 15 minutes. Lift rack with salmon out of water and onto large platter. Do not unwrap salmon or remove from rack; let cool to room temperature, about 1 hour.
• To make aspic glaze, strain 10 cups court-bouillon through fine sieve lined with cheesecloth into large stockpot. Add egg whites and remaining cup wine. Whisk over medium heat until mixture begins to simmer, about 10 minutes. Stop whisking, and let simmer 15 minutes more, or until broth is clear and all the foam has risen to surface. Remove foam with slotted spoon, and strain broth through very fine sieve lined with double thickness of cheesecloth, which has been soaked in ice water and wrung of excess.
• Transfer broth to large saucepan. Bring to boil, reduce to simmer, and cook until reduced to 4 1/2 cups. Meanwhile, sprinkle gelatin over 1/4 cup cold water in small bowl; let stand 10 minutes. Warm gelatin over gently simmering double boiler; stir until dissolved. Stir into broth; transfer to large bowl. (The less gelatin used, the better.)
• When salmon has cooled, gently turn bottom side up. Unwrap; do not remove cheesecloth. With dull side of paring knife, scrape off skin, and remove brown fatty bits underneath. Using cheesecloth to cradle salmon, turn the presentation side up; repeat skinning process. Remove and dispose of cheesecloth. Transfer salmon, still on rack, to refrigerator. When chilled, thicken aspic glaze by stirring over ice bath. Aspic should just be thick enough to coat; if it thickens too much, stir it over a double boiler until viscous again.
• Arrange salmon (still on rack) on metal rack over baking sheet. Ladle 1 1/2 cups aspic over salmon to coat. Chill salmon 20 minutes; repeat glazing process. While salmon chills again, put thin layer of aspic in bottom of serving platter. Carefully transfer salmon from poaching rack to the platter. Decorate salmon with your choice of garnishes, temporarily securing citrus slices with toothpicks. Over each garnish ladle a little aspic; chill once more. Remove toothpicks before presenting.

ALMOST AUNT SANDY'S SWEET AND SOUR SALMON

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees. In a large pot, simmer fish broth with garlic, bay leaf and salt for 15 minutes.
• In a 9-by-13-inch baking dish, scatter red onion and half of the thyme. Place salmon on top, skin side down, and season with salt and pepper. Scatter remaining thyme, raisins and lemon on top.
• Stir vinegar and sugar into broth and let simmer for 1 minute to dissolve sugar. Remove garlic and bay leaf from broth; carefully pour broth over fish. Bake for 8 to 10 minutes, until fish is just cooked through to taste. Serve hot, warm or cold, with challah for dipping into broth.

SALMON IN ASPIC RECIPE - (5/5)

Steps:

• Poach salmon in Court Bouillon for 12-15 min per pound. Allow salmon to cool in its cooking liquid Transfer salmon to a large wire rack and carefully peel back the body skin Coat with a layer of Fish Aspic at point of setting Allow the coating to set then decorate the fish suitably Coat again with aspic Pour some fish aspic to coat the bottom of the serving platter and allow to set Pour the rest of the aspic into a shallow pan about 1/4 inch thick Bring the Court Bouillon to a boil and allow to simmer for 15 min and then cool before using to poach the salmon FISH ASPIC To clarify each quart of poaching liquid add 2 egg whites Beat with an egg beater and then in saucepan over low heat bring it slowly to a boil stirring often Remove from heat and allow it to settle a few min before straining through cheesecloth Soften some gelatin in cold water(1 envelope per 2 quarts) and add to hot clarified fish aspic Stir until dissolved Apply aspic with a brush TO SERVE Transfer the decorated fish to the aspic covered serving platter Garnis with stuffed eggs,cucumber stuffed with a puree of tuna,sardines or anchovies,tomatoes,lemon wedges,parsley

WHOLE POACHED SALMON

Steps:

• Rinse fish under cold running water, washing away any blood around the gills, which would cloud the stock. Pat the fish dry inside and out with paper towels; place on a clean work surface. Trim the fins from the back, belly, and near the gills with a pair of kitchen scissors. If the fish is too long to fit in the poacher, remove the head and tail with a sharp knife; cut off the tail right below the tail fins.
• Cut a double thickness of cheesecloth 17 inches wide and 8 inches longer than salmon. Place the cheesecloth on a clean work surface. Lay the fish lengthwise on the cloth, and wrap the cloth around the fish. Tie the ends of the cheesecloth with kitchen twine.
• Place the rack in the bottom of the poacher, and fill with the cooled court bouillon. Using the ends of the cloth as handles, lower salmon into the poacher, adding water if necessary to cover the fish. Cover, and set the poacher over two burners. Bring the liquid to a simmer; reduce heat to very low. Cook at a bare simmer for 25 minutes (the water should not be boiling).
• Slide a wooden spoon through each handle of the poaching rack; lift out the rack, and prop the spoons on the edges of the poacher so the fish is elevated. Raise one of the spoons to lift the side of the rack that supports the head end, and expose the widest part of the fish's back. Insert an instant-read thermometer near where the fin was. The fish is fully cooked when the temperature registers 135 degrees. (For a larger salmon this may take up to an hour.) If the temperature is too low, return the fish to the liquid, and continue poaching, checking the temperature every 10 minutes.
• Using two wooden spoons as described in Step 4, remove the rack from the liquid, and prop it on top of poacher at an angle to drain, reserving court bouillon. When salmon is cool enough to handle, about 15 minutes, transfer to a clean work surface; let cool completely, about 45 minutes.
• To make the aspic glaze, pour the court bouillon through a fine sieve. Place 6 cups of the bouillon in a stockpot. In a separate bowl, whisk 6 egg whites until frothy, then whisk the whites into the bouillon. Whisk the mixture over medium heat until it comes to a simmer, about 10 minutes. The egg whites will draw all the cloudy particles out of the stock and begin to coagulate on top. Stop whisking, and simmer until all the foam has risen to the surface and the broth below is clear, about 15 minutes
• Using a slotted spoon, carefully lift out the foam. Soak a 12-by-12-inch piece of cheesecloth in ice water. Squeeze out any excess water, and line the sieve with the cold cheesecloth. Pour the broth through the sieve. Repeat, using fresh cheesecloth each time, until all the foam has been removed from the stock. Place 1/3 cup cold water in a small bowl, and evenly sprinkle the gelatin over the top. Let sit until gelatin is softened, about 10 minutes. Add the gelatin mixture to the clarified stock, and bring to a simmer over medium heat, whisking constantly, until all the gelatin has dissolved; do not boil. Remove from the heat.
• Unwrap the fish, leaving the cheesecloth in place underneath. If the head and tail are still attached and are in good shape, you may want to leave them on for decoration. If not, remove the tail with kitchen scissors. The head will pull off easily. Turn the fish over, so that the side that was on the rack faces up. Peel the skin off using a paring knife and your fingers.
• Using cheesecloth to support the fish, flip it onto a serving platter, skin side up. Remove the skin from the top of fish. Using the back of a paring knife, gently scrape off any brown fat.
• Decorate the salmon with your choice of garnishes. Arrange the garnishes on top of the fish; temporarily secure with toothpicks. Pour the aspic into a large bowl set over an ice-water bath. Stir the aspic until it begins to thicken, 5 to 10 minutes. Remove the aspic from the ice bath, and ladle a coating over the salmon. Refrigerate the salmon 20 minutes. Repeat the glazing process, if desired. If the aspic becomes too thick to ladle, warm in a double boiler until liquid again. Remove the toothpicks. Keep the salmon in the refrigerator, uncovered, up to 24 hours, or until your guests arrive. (The aspic coating keeps the fish from drying out.)
• When ready to serve, clean away any collected aspic around the bottom of the fish; cut with a fish server. Start at the wide end of the fish; slide the server under or between the garnishes, rather than cutting through them. Cut down to the bone, working the server gently between the flakes. Lift a section of the fish with the garnishes on top, and transfer to a dinner plate. Continue cutting and serving as needed.

MUSTARD ASPIC

Steps:

• Lightly oil a 5 to 6 cup ring mold.
• Sprinkle the gelatin over the water in a small bowl and let it stand for about five minutes to soften.
• Whisk together the vinegar, the sugar, the mustard, the mustard seeds, and the eggs in the top of a double boiler over barely simmering water, cooking, whisking constantly, until it registers 160F on a candy thermometer, and remove from the heat.
• Stir in the softened gelatin, the paprika, and salt and pepper to taste, stirring until the gelatin is dissolved.
• Transfer the pan to a larger bowl of ice and cold water, and stir the mixture until it is cold.
• Whip the cream to stiff peaks, fold into the egg mixture with the parsley until the mixture is combined well, and pour the mixture into prepared mold.
• Cover and chill mold for 4 hours, or until it is set.
• To unmold, dip the ring mold briefly in hot water, run a knife around the edges of the aspic, and invert the aspic onto a serving plate.

SHRIMP ASPIC

Steps:

• Soften gelatin in cold water for five minutes, then heat to melt completely.
• Add lemon juice and cool.
• Before it congeals, add mayonnaise, salt to taste and mix well.
• Add remaining ingredients, mix thoroughly but lightly to preserve the shape of the shrimps.
• Lightly spray mold with cooking spray (or lightly oil with vegetable oil) and transfer mixture to mold.
• Chill until firm.
• Unmold onto salad greens.
• Serve with additional mayonnaise.