Long known as a meal to be shared and enjoyed, the Easter table is second only to Christmas as the time to reconnect with family and friends. While lamb has always taken the top spot as a traditional centrepiece, this year is the year to change it up, and look at serving up festive plates of succulent salmon and rich, autumnal flavours of venison.
GOOD FRIDAY
Traditionally a day to forego meat, this is a wonderful time to look at flexitarian and vegetarian meals.
SALMON
While beef, pork, chicken and other meats are traditionally off the menu on Good Friday, fish is permissible for many observers. And few fish can feel like a celebration dish as perfectly as salmon.
Cooked, raw, hot and cold smoked; served with beautiful seared crispy skin when cooked, or as a gravlax of sashimi when raw, salmon is the perfect fridge essential to create a quick plated or buff et option that can be easily transformed into canapés, entrées, mains or simply as part of a shared platter.
New Zealand King Salmon, otherwise known as Chinook salmon, needs pure water and cold currents, and is usually farmed, with plenty of space for the fish to thrive. Choose a sustainably ocean farmed salmon like Big Glory Bay, right at the bottom of the country, in Stewart Island. Big Glory Bay’s isolation, and the purity of its waters, means its salmon is fresh and healthy; in 2023 it took out Gold and the Special Award at the Outstanding NZ Food Producers awards, as well as awards at the Primary Industries New Zealand 2023 Awards; it’s also been named as a finalist in the 2023 NZ Food Awards, in the Primary Sector category.
Simple Salmon Tips
To create drama to a centre plate, marinate raw salmon fillets or portions with beet or berry juice for a stunning change in colour when sliced.
Pre-portion large fillets for easy serving and more even cooking. This is a good way to get the best out of your fillet; for fine dining, use the premium portions with even thickness, and use up the thin skirt side for tasty pasta, skewers, croquets etc.
Be careful not to overcook your salmon or the white protein (albumin) will come to the surface.
V Cut Salmon
What’s special about Big Glory Bay King Salmon besides the luxurious rich creamy flavour and stunning colouring… it has no bones thanks to a very clever V cut feature (gap along the fillet) so now your recipe creations can be effortless, smooth and bone free. The v cut is due to a high tech photographic and water jet system that removes the bones, with minimal handling so the salmon maintains its high-quality texture and integrity of the flesh so your presentation is perfect.
