Equipment
Ingredients
Roasted Salmon
- 600 g salmon fillets, skin-on, cut into 4 equal portions
- 15 ml olive oil
- 4 g kosher salt
- 2 g black pepper, freshly cracked
Ginger-Rhubarb Sauce
- 200 g rhubarb, cut into 1-centimeter dice
- 10 g fresh ginger, peeled and finely grated
- 60 g honey
- 45 ml water
- 20 g unsalted butter, cold and cubed
- 1 g kosher salt
Nutrition (per serving)
Nutrition is estimated per serving. Nutrients without complete source data are omitted.
Full nutrition
- Calories
- 524 kcal
- Protein
- 38 g
- Carbohydrates
- 21 g
- Fat
- 46 g
- Fiber
- 1 g
- Sugar
- 13 g
- Sodium
- 3339 mg
- Saturated Fat
- 3 g
- Monounsaturated Fat
- 4 g
- Polyunsaturated Fat
- 1 g
- Cholesterol
- 11 mg
- Potassium
- 170 mg
- Calcium
- 461 mg
- Iron
- 18.1 mg
- Magnesium
- 458 mg
- Phosphorus
- 460 mg
- Zinc
- 1.4 mg
- Vitamin A
- 443 mcg
- Vitamin C
- 4 mg
- Vitamin E
- 0.8 mg
- Vitamin K
- 18 mcg
- Vitamin B6
- 0.0 mg
- Vitamin B12
- 0.0 mcg
- Thiamin
- 0.01 mg
- Riboflavin
- 0.02 mg
- Niacin
- 0.2 mg
- Folate
- 4 mcg
- Water
- 63 g
Sources: Aggregated Public Data, USDA FoodData Central
Method
Preheat your oven to 200°C/400°F. Line a baking sheet with parchment paper.
Place the salmon fillets skin-side down on the prepared baking sheet. Drizzle evenly with olive oil and season the flesh with kosher salt and black pepper.
Roast the salmon in the preheated oven for 12 to 15 minutes, depending on thickness. The fish is ready when it reaches an internal temperature of 63°C/145°F.
While the salmon is roasting, combine the diced rhubarb, grated fresh ginger, honey, and water in a small saucepan.
Place the saucepan over medium heat and bring to a simmer. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the rhubarb completely softens and breaks down into a chunky, jam-like sauce.
Remove the saucepan from the heat. Stir in the cold cubed butter and one gram of kosher salt, mixing continuously until the butter is completely melted and the sauce looks glossy.
Transfer the roasted salmon to serving plates and spoon the warm ginger-rhubarb sauce generously over each fillet.
Chef's Notes
- Choosing rhubarb: Look for stalks that are bright ruby red and firm to the touch. The redder the stalk, the rosier your final sauce will be, though green stalks will taste identical.
- Balancing astringency: Rhubarb varies wildly in tartness depending on its harvest time. Always taste your finished sauce before serving and adjust with a tiny pinch of sugar or an extra drizzle of honey if it causes you to pucker too much.
- Skin-on advantage: Roasting salmon with the skin on helps insulate the delicate bottom flesh from the direct heat of the hot pan, acting as a buffer to prevent overcooking.
- Ginger preparation: Using a microplane for the ginger rather than mincing it with a knife ensures you capture all the aromatic juices and prevents any fibrous, stringy bits from ruining the smooth texture of the sauce.
Storage
Refrigerator: 2 days — Store salmon and sauce in separate airtight containers.
Freezer: 1 month — Salmon texture degrades slightly upon thawing. The rhubarb sauce freezes exceptionally well.
Reheating: Reheat the salmon gently in a 135 Celsius oven to prevent overcooking and drying out the fish. Warm the sauce separately on the stove over low heat.
Troubleshooting
Rhubarb sauce is too thin and watery
Cause: Lacked sufficient simmering time to evaporate excess liquid
Fix: Return to medium heat and simmer for another 3 to 5 minutes to reduce
Prevention: Allow the sauce to simmer until it visibly thickens to a jam-like consistency
Salmon is dry and chalky
Cause: The fish was overbaked past its ideal internal temperature
Fix: Cannot be fixed, but the rich rhubarb sauce will help mask some dryness
Prevention: Check the thickest part of the fillet with an instant-read thermometer a few minutes before the minimum suggested cooking time
Sauce is overwhelmingly sour
Cause: Natural variation in rhubarb tartness
Fix: Stir in an additional teaspoon of honey until balanced to your liking
Prevention: Taste the sauce before taking it off the heat
Cultural Context
While rhubarb is traditionally pigeonholed into sweet applications like pies and crumbles in North American and British cuisines, its natural astringency and bright acidity make it an incredible culinary tool for savory dishes. Much like lemon or tamarind, it acts as a tart counterpoint that cuts through the rich, fatty profiles of oily fish like salmon, highlighting a modern approach to utilizing seasonal spring produce.
