Spiced salmon skewers with parsley oil

This delicious salmon kebab dish originates from the Middle East (Palestine to be precise).  It emits the wonderful aromas and flavours of Middle Eastern spices.  It also looks highly attractive.

Preparation Time: 25 Mins

Cooking Time: 1¾ Hrs

Total Time: 3 Hrs

Ingredients

For 4 servings…

500 gms          Salmon  - fillet, cut into 24 equal-sized pieces        

1½ tbs            Olive oil    

2                    Onions  - each cut into 8 chucks

                     Pepper  - freshly ground, black 

                     Salt          

8                    Tomatoes  - cherry   

For the marinade

1 tbs               Fish spice mix          

½ tbs             Sumac      

2 tbs               Olive oil    

                     Pepper  - freshly ground, black 

¾ tsp             Salt          

For the parsley oil

40 gms            Parsley     

1 clove            Garlic  - chopped finely          

90 ml              Olive oil    

                     Pepper  - freshly ground, black 

¼ tsp             Salt          

1                    Lemon      

To serve

2 tbs               Parsley oil  

1                    Lemon  - quartered   

Method

To marinate the fish…

Put the salmon into a bowl with the fish spice mix, sumac, olive oil, salt and a generous grind of pepper.  Mix well to combine and then leave in a fridge for at least an hour.

To prepare the onions…

Put the olive oil into a sauté pan and place on a medium heat.  Add the onions and cook for about 5 minutes, stirring a few times - until they are slightly softened but have not taken on any colour.  It does not matter if they fall apart a little bit and are no longer whole chunks.  Remove from the heat and set aside.

To prepare the parsley oil…

Put the parsley, garlic, oil, salt and pepper into a food processor.  Blitz until smooth, then transfer to a small bowl.

Cut the peel and white pith off the lemon.  Release the segments from the lemon by slicing between the membranes and then roughly chop the segments.  Add these to the parsley oil and stir thoroughly.

To prepare the kebabs…

Preheat an oven to 230°C.

To assemble the skewers, start with a tomato and then alternate the salmon chunks and onion pieces.

Finish each skewer with a second tomato.

Place a well-greased griddle pan on a high heat.

Once the griddle pan is smoking hot, add the skewers and grill for 4 minutes, turning throughout so that all sides are charred on the outside.  Transfer to a parchment-lined baking tray.  Transfer to the oven and bake for 7 minutes so that the salmon is just cooked through.

Transfer the skewers to a large serving platter (or individual serving plates) and drizzle over the parsley oil.  Serve at once, with a wedge of lemon alongside.

Wine recommendations

A robust white wine.

Conventional

     Côtes du Rhône blanc

Interesting

     Chardonnay Languedoc

     Côte Chalonnaise blanc

     Saint Joseph blanc