An Asian salad with a ginger-maple vinaigrette is topped with poached salmon and a zesty pesto.
For the Pesto
Makes four servings
Prep time: 20 to 25 minutes, plus time to poach salmon
Ingredients
- 1 tbs. minced gingerroot
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 3/4 cup tightly packed cilantro leaves
- 1/4 cup tightly packed mint leaves
- 1/4 cup tightly packed flat-leaf parsley
- 3 tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
- 1/4 tsp. sea salt
- 2 tbs. freshly squeezed lime juice
Directions
Place all ingredients in a small food processor. Blend until smooth, about one minute. Spoon pesto onto the poached salmon fillets and serve.
For the Watercress Salad
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup cilantro leaves
- 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp. lime zest
- 3 tbs. freshly squeezed lime juice
- 1 tsp. grated gingerroot
- 1/2 tsp. maple syrup
- 1 cup frozen shelled edamame, thawed
- Freshly squeezed lemon juice
- Sea salt
- 2 cups tightly packed watercress
- 2 cups shredded purple cabbage
- 2 tsp. sesame seeds, toasted
Directions
- First make a vinaigrette: Place cilantro, olive oil, lime zest, lime juice, gingerroot, and maple syrup into a small food processor and process about one minute, until smooth.
- Rinse the edamame well and mix with a spritz of lemon juice and a pinch of sea salt. Combine with watercress and cabbage, and toss.
- Just before serving, dress with cilantro vinaigrette and top with sesame seeds.
Why No Numbers?
Readers sometimes ask us why we don’t publish nutrition information with our recipes. We believe that (barring specific medical advice to the contrary) if you’re eating primarily whole, healthy foods — an array of sustainably raised vegetables, fruits, nuts, seeds, legumes, meats, fish, eggs, whole-kernel grains, and healthy fats and oils — you probably don’t need to stress about the numbers. We prefer to focus on food quality and trust our bodies to tell us what we need. — The Editors
This originally appeared as “Poached Salmon With Asian Pesto and Watercress Salad” in the May 2018 print issue of Experience Life.
Cast my vote with readers who would like you to publish the nutrition information with your recipes. Even those of us who eat primarily whole, healthy foods are concerned with the ratio of carbohydrates, protein, and fats in a meal, not to mention the grams of sugar. To calculate the glycemic load, one needs to know the grams of carbohydrates. How can we do that if you don’t publish the number of carbs in a meal?