Serves4
- Active time:40 min
- Start to finish:50 min
June 2007
Removing the bones from salmon steaks is surprisingly easy, and you’ll get filletlike quality at a lower price. Here, we’ve grilled the steaks to intensify their flavor, and paired them with the sharp bite of horseradish.
-
1 stick
(1/2 cup) unsalted butter, softened
-
1/2
cup
drained bottled horseradish (from a 6-oz jar)
-
2
tablespoons
finely chopped fresh dill
-
1
tablespoon
finely chopped shallot
-
1
teaspoon
salt
-
3/4
teaspoon
black pepper
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4
(1- to 1 1/4-inch-thick) salmon steaks (preferably wild)
-
1 to 2
tablespoons
olive oil
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Special equipment:
kitchen string
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Stir together butter, horseradish, dill, shallot, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a bowl with a rubber spatula until combined well. Transfer butter to a sheet of parchment or wax paper and roll into a 1-inch-thick cylinder. Twist ends of parchment to close, then chill until firm, about 20 minutes.
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Prepare grill for direct-heat cooking over medium-hot charcoal (moderate heat for gas); see "
Grilling Procedure."
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Put salmon steaks on a cutting board with tail-like flaps nearest you. Halve 1 steak lengthwise by cutting along each side of large center bone. Remove and discard bones (you will end up with 2 thin pieces of fillet). Flip 1 piece over, turning it so rounded thicker portion is nearest you. Push halves together to create a yin-yang presentation, wrapping tail-like flaps around outside of steak. Wrap a piece of kitchen string around outside of steak, going around once or twice, and tie ends.
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Brush salmon on both sides with oil, then sprinkle with remaining 3/4 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.
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Oil grill rack, then grill salmon, covered only if using a gas grill, turning over once and if necessary moving to area with no coals underneath to avoid flare-ups, until just cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes total.
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Serve each fish steak topped with a slice of horseradish butter.
Cooks’ notes: - If you aren’t able to grill outdoors, salmon can be cooked in a hot lightly oiled well-seasoned large (2-burner) ridged grill pan over moderate heat.
- Boneless steaks can be formed 12 hours ahead and chilled, covered. Bring to room temperature before grilling.
- Butter can be chilled, wrapped well, up to 1 week or frozen up to 1 month. Let soften slightly before using.
