While attending the 2012 Seattle Boat Show I discovered a gem of a salmon cookbook. LaDonna Gundersen, of Ketchikan, my hometown, has published a new cookbook titled Salmon, Desserts & Friends. And she has some absolutely great salmon recipes. With her permission I am posting the recipe from page 68 – Baked Mini Salmon Croquettes with Creamy Dill Sauce. I have served this dish as an appetizer twice to friends and they loved it.
Ingredients:
- 1 can (14 to 15 oz) or 1 pound filet baked Alaska salmon
- 1 cup milk
- 1 ½ cups Panko bread crumbs
- 6 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, freshly grated
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon black pepper
- ¼ cup butter
- ¼ cup onion, minced
- ¼ cup red bell pepper, minced
- ¼ cup celery, minced
- 1 cup all-purpose flour
- ¾ tablespoon Thai garlic chili pepper sauce
- 1 tablespoon lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons green onions, minced
- 1 tablespoon fresh dill, minced
- cooking spray oil
Ingredients for creamy dill sauce
- 1/3 cup sour cream
- 1 teaspoon capers
- 1 teaspoon lemon juice
- 1 teaspoon fresh dill, minced
- pinch of salt
Flake the drained salmon flesh into a bowl and set aside.
In a small bowl, combine the bread crumbs with the Parmesan cheese, salt and pepper. Set aside.
Melt butter in a large skillet over medium heat. Sauté the onion, red bell pepper and the celery until soft. Whisk the flour into the mix until smooth. Add one cup of liquid from the canned salmon mixed with the milk. Stir until thickened. Remove from heat.
Stir in the salmon, chili pepper sauce, lemon juice, green onions, dill and ½ cup of the bread crumb mixture. Refrigerate one hour.
Whisk the sour cream, capers, lemon juice, dill and a pinch of salt in a small bowl. Refrigerate until serving time.
Preheat oven to 400 oF.
Line a baking sheet with parchment paper. Place the remaining bread crumb mixture on a shallow plate. Roll the salmon mixture into 1½ inch balls, coat with the crumbs and place 1-inch apart on the prepared baking sheet. Spray the tops lightly with the oil. Bake 20-25 minutes until lightly golden brown.
Serve immediately with the creamy dill sauce.
Photo by Ole Gundersen
