Salmon Wellington

Salmon Wellington is one of those dishes that never leaves your mind, hopefully in a good way if you love a good salmon dish. It’s popular all over the world, in Russia they call a similar dish Salmon coulibiac, the French call it Salmon en Croute and in Slovenia we call it Losos v testu. What all these names have in common is a beautiful, golden brown crusty exterior and a very very delicious, juicy oven baked salmon interior. My mum has always made Salmon Wellington with spinach and puff pastry, which I found out while doing research for the recipe is pretty popular (and tasty) thing to do. This Salom Wellington recipe is without spinach and the salmon is not wrapped in a puff pastry dough. However, if you don’t have the time to make the dough or if you prefer puff pastry, go ahead and use a very cold puff pastry dough. When my mum made this dish when I was a kid I was blown away by her skills. One minute she was cleaning the house and then minutes later she had this spectacular dish ready for the whole family. A piece of fish wrapped in dough seemed (still seems, honestly) like the most magical thing someone can prepare. Now that I cook my own meals, I know my mum was skilled, yes, but this delicious salmon dish is truly prepared easy, yet it leaves an impression. An impression that you prepared something spectacular, with love and attention. I love it. Serve it for Christmas dinner, Valentine’s day, Mother’s day or other celebrations, or since it takes a little longer than an hour (when you use homemade dough), you can serve it for lunch/dinner during the week or on the weekends as well. Magical, yet simple to make, hope you guys will love it as much as we do. Let’s jump into the world of salmon.

How to make Salmon Wellington?

dough - Prepare the dough with four simple ingredients: all-purpose flour (you can also use plain flour or white spelt flour), butter (we don’t recommend using anything else), pork lard (you can substitute it with butter or coconut oil) and water. The dough is buttery and delicious, however, if you don’t have the time to make it, you can also use a very cold puff pastry.

salmon - Use a fresh salmon fillet that is equally thick through the whole length. Make sure to remove any pin bones.

sugar - Don’t worry the salmon will not be sweet or sweetened in any way. The sugar only plays a role in marinating the salmon so that it stays nice and pinky while baking.

lemon zest - Adds a freshness. You could also use lime zest or orange zest. Just make sure you are using bio citruses that aren’t waxed.

soy sauce - Adds a lovely umami taste.

dill - Use fresh dill or use dried dill if the fresh one is not in season. You could also use chopped fennel.

How to remove the skin from salmon?

The easiest way to remove the skin from salmon is to use a very sharp, flexible fillet kitchen knife. Place the fillet skin-side down, on a chopping board. Holding the end firmly, use a sharp knife to make a 2 cm (1-inch) cut between the flesh and skin in the opposite direction from the tail end. Hold the skin tightly (if the skin is slippery, put your fingers into salt and then hold the skin - this will create a better grip). Continue to cut along the length of the fillet. Remove and discard skin. If there are still pin bones in your fillet, remove them with kitchen tweezers. In between dip the tweezers into a cup filled with water to remove pin bones easier from the tweezer.

How do I make pastry for salmon?

This salmon wellington pastry is made with four ingredients only: all-purpose flour, butter, pork lard, and water. Knead into a nice dough, place in the fridge for 30 minutes, then roll into a nice, thin rectangle. You can also use a very cold store-bought puff pastry.

Can you freeze salmon Wellington?

You can freeze salmon Wellington before brushing it with egg wash. Place salmon Wellington on a tray, place in the freezer for one hour, this way the salmon Wellington will keep its pretty shape. Then put it in a freezer bag and freeze for up to a month. When you decide to use the frozen salmon Wellington, place it out of the freezer bag and let it defrost to room temperature, for about 2 - 3 hours, then continue with the recipe.

What to serve with salmon wellington?

Salmon Wellington is a wonderfully rich dish, so we recommend light sides like:

Ingredients

dough

250 g all-purpose flour (2 cups or 8.8 oz)

3 tbsp cold butter (40g / 1.4 oz)

1 tbsp pork lard

90 ml water (3.2 oz)

salmon

600 g salmon, skin removed (1.3 lbs)

1 tbsp salt

1 tbsp sugar

1 lemon (zest)

1 tsp soy sauce

1 tbsp fresh dill

1 egg (for the egg wash)

Tools and equipment

bowl

plastic wrap

fish knife

cutting board

baking dish

rolling pin

paper towels

parchment paper

METHOD

prepare the dough

Sift the flour into a large bowl. Use your fingertips to rub the butter into the flour until there are no large lumps of butter remaining. Bring water to a boil and add it to the flour mixture. Knead into a nice, elastic dough. Wrap in plastic wrap and place in the fridge for about 30 minutes.
marinate the salmon

Meanwhile, marinate the salmon. Pat dry your salmon fillet, remove the skin.
Add salt, sugar, lemon zest, dill and soy sauce to a baking dish. Stir to combine and place the salmon on top. Roll the salmon in the mixture and place the baking dish in the fridge for 20 minutes for the salmon to marinate.

Tip

Make sure not to leave the salmon marinating for more than 20 - 30 minutes. If you leave it for longer, the salmon will be too salty and it will lose too much liquid which will result in a not perfectly juicy salmon dish.
Roll out the dough

Preheat your oven to 210 °C / 410 °F. Lightly dust the working surface and roll the dough into a rectangle approx. 30 cm x 20 cm (12-inch x 8-inch) and 2 mm / 5/64 inch thickness.
Salmon Wellington

Remove the salmon from the fridge and rinse the marinate under cold running water. Pat the salmon dry using paper kitchen towels and place it in the center of your rolled dough. Fold the pastry over the salmon, cut off the unnecessary dough and then seal the edges by pressing them together with a fork. Make sure the salmon is carefully wrapped and sealed from all sides, just like in the photo.

Tip

At this point, you can freeze the salmon Wellington or leave it in the fridge for up to 6 hours.
Eggwash

Transfer the salmon wellington to a baking sheet lined with parchment paper and brush using an egg wash. Using a teaspoon make semicircles in the dough to create a fish scales pattern. Be careful not to press to hard or there might be holes in the dough.
Bake

Place the baking sheet with salmon wellington to the oven and bake for 20 minutes on the middle rack, then after 10 minutes of baking, rotate the baking dish for 180 degrees and bake for another 10 minutes. You might need to bake it longer than 20 minutes in total if your salmon fillet is thick. After 20 minutes of baking, increase the heat to 230°C / 450 °F. Then transfer the baking dish to a higher rack and bake for another 4 - 5 minutes or until the crust is beautiful, golden brown.
Serve

Remove the baked Salmon Wellington from the oven and transfer it to a wire rack for about 5 minutes, then cut using a serrated knife into five slices. Serve with a side of your choosing. Make sure each slice is at least 3 cm / 1.2 inch thick or it may fall apart.

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Salmon Wellington