Scott Peacock of Peacock farms sells various types of eggplants at the farmers market.
DJ Olsen is the chef at Lou Wine Bar. He takes corn, zucchini, tomatoes and green beens, cooks them slightly and then tosses them together. He serves this summer succotash over salmon with a salsa verde.
Sweet Corn Succotash with Slow-roasted Wild Salmon, Salsa Verde
8 servings
4 ears sweet corn (yellow, white, bi-color, etc.)
1 small sweet onion (Bermuda, Maui, etc.), small dice
1/3 lb stringless green beans (Blue Lake, haricot verts. etc.)
1/3 lb baby zucchini
1/3 lb cherry tomatoes (Sungolds, Sweet 100s, Purple Cherokees, etc.)
1/4 cup pitted, niçoise olives
Kosher salt
2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
Filtered water
3 Tablespoons unsalted, high butterfat butter (Plugra, Challenge, etc.)
Fresh lime juice
2 Tablespoons (per serving) salsa verde (recipe follows)
1. Remove corn kernels from cobs; reserve
2. Snap stem ends from beans; slice crosswise into 1/4” pieces (kernel of corn-sized); reserve
3. Slice baby zucchini lengthwise into quarters; cut each quarter, crosswise, into 1/4” quarter moons; reserve
4. Remove stems from cherry tomatoes; from the stem end, cut each tomato in half; reserve
5. In sauté pan large enough to hold all vegetables, heat 2T extra virgin olive oil (med. high-heat)
6. Add shallots, corn, pinch of salt; heat, stirring with a wooden spoon, until shallots begin to sizzle
7. Add beans, zucchinis, tomatoes, olives; toss vegetables in pan to coat with oil; increase heat to high
8. When pan is sizzling hot, add a few tablespoons water, enough to begin steaming the vegetables
9. Lightly steam vegetables, constantly tossing them in the pan (1-2 minutes)
10. Once the water has reduced slightly and the vegetables have begun to release their juices, add butter, one tablespoon at a time, swirling the pan with each addition, until butter has entirely melted and emulsified with vegetable juices.
11. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, good squeeze of lime
Although the succotash is best if served immediately, it can be held at this point for several hours in the pan, off the heat and at room temperature (do not refrigerate). To refresh, lightly heat the vegetables in the same pan, swirling them, adding small amounts of water until the sauce has loosened and everything has warmed.
Salsa Verde
yield: 1-1/2 cups
Basil, 1 small bunch, leaves only
Tarragon, 1 small bunch, leaves only
Parsley, 1 small bunch, leaves only
Chives, 1 small bunch, cut into 1” batons
1 large clove garlic
Small lemon, peel grated with a micro plane
A few good pinches salt
1-1/2 cups good quality extra virgin olive oil
1. Place basil, tarragon, parsley, chives, grated lemon peel, in work bowl of a food processor
2. Peel garlic clove; using the flat side of a chef’s knife and a pinch of salt, mash garlic into a fine pulp
3. Add garlic pulp to herbs, along with another good pinch of salt
4. Lightly moisten all ingredients with olive oil
5. Pulse ingredients until finely chopped
6. Scrape down side of work bowl; with motor running, drizzle in enough olive oil to make a relatively thin sauce of oil and herbs; reserve in a plastic squeeze bottle
Salsa verde is best made the day it will be used. However, it will keep up to 4 days, with diminishing quality each day. Generally, the herbs will darken, the flavors flatten with each passing day.
Slow-roasted Wild Salmon
8 servings
3-1/2 lbs wild salmon filet, skin on
Fleur de sel
1/3 cup good quality extra virgin olive oil
Fresh lemon
Prepare the oven: place the first oven rack in its lowest position; place the second oven rack above it, in the middle of the oven; set oven temp. to 250°; 30 minutes before roasting the fish, place a large, shallow baking dish, half-filled with warm water, on the bottom rack of the oven.
Meantime, with a very sharp knife, remove skin from the fish; carefully remove any discoloration on the skin side, slicing until the flesh is a uniform red color.
Tilting your knife at 45°, cut across the width of the filet to make eight, equal-sized portions (5-6 oz).
Season each portion (both sides), with fleur de sel; rub each portion with extra virgin olive oil.
Add a little olive oil to the inside bottom of a shallow baking dish large enough to hold all portions.
Lay fish portions in the baking dish, placing them end to end to re-form the original filet shape.
Place that baking dish on middle rack of the oven, directly above dish filled with warm water
Roast fish until small beads of white fat begin appearing around the base of each portion (6-8 min.). At this point the fish will be thoroughly cooked through, yet still retain its original reddish color. The texture will be soft and unctuous. If you prefer more well done fish, return the baking dish to the oven and continue roasting. As the fish roasts further, white dots will begin appearing on the surface of each portion. The longer the fish cooks, the more white dots will appear.
To serve, preheat individual pasta bowls. Spoon a good serving of the warmed succotash into the base of each bowl. Lay a portion of roasted salmon over the succotash. Squeeze fresh lemon over the fish. Garnish both succotash and fish with a few tablespoons (squeezes) of salsa verde.