Easy Creamy French Salmon Stew with Vegetables
shared by Nibblore Cuisine
This French-style salmon blanquette combines tender salmon, carrots, leeks, and mushrooms in a creamy white sauce brightened with lemon. Briefly searing the salmon separately keeps the pieces intact, while a simple roux creates a smooth sauce without relying on too much cream. Serve it with rice for an easy yet elegant family dinner. • Choose thick, evenly sized pieces of salmon so they cook at the same rate. • Once the cream and salmon have been added, maintain only a very gentle simmer; vigorous boiling can dry out the fish and cause the sauce to split. • If the sauce seems too thick, loosen it with 1 to 2 tablespoons of hot stock just before serving. • Serve this salmon blanquette with white rice, steamed potatoes, or fresh tagliatelle. • Replace the button mushrooms with 150 g frozen peas, adding them during the final 4 minutes of cooking the vegetables. • If double cream is unavailable, use 150 ml crème fraîche thinned with 2 tablespoons of stock. • The salmon can be replaced with the same amount of skinless trout, using the same cooking times and doneness cues. Refrigerate the cooled blanquette in an airtight container for up to 2 days. Reheat gently in a saucepan over very low heat for 6 to 8 minutes without boiling, adding a splash of stock if the sauce has thickened. Freezing is not recommended because the sauce may separate and the vegetables can lose their texture.
- Total time
- 50 min
- Servings
- 4
- Difficulty
- Beginner-friendly
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Save to my cookbook — freeIngredients
- 600 gsalmon, skinless and boneless, cut into 4 cm cubes
- 2carrots, peeled and thinly sliced into half-moons
- 2leeks, white parts only, washed and sliced into 1 cm rounds
- 150 gbutton mushrooms, quartered
- 1shallot, finely chopped
- 35 gunsalted butter
- 25 gplain flour
- 400 mlvegetable stock, hot
- 150 mldouble cream
- 1lemon
- 1bay leaf
- 2 tbspflat-leaf parsley, finely chopped
- 1 tbspolive oil
- ¾ tspfine salt
- ¼ tspground black pepper
Instructions
- 1Remove the salmon from the fridge 10 minutes before cooking. Finely grate 1 teaspoon of zest from the lemon, then squeeze out 1 tablespoon of juice. Pat the salmon cubes dry and season with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt and half the black pepper.
- 2Heat the olive oil in a 28 cm sauté pan over medium-high heat. Arrange the salmon in a single layer and sear for just 45 seconds on each of two sides, without cooking it through. Carefully transfer the cubes to a plate.
- 3Reduce the heat to medium and melt 15 g of the butter in the same pan. Add the shallot, carrots, leeks, mushrooms, and 1/4 teaspoon of the salt. Cook for 5 minutes, stirring regularly, until the vegetables begin to soften without browning.
- 4Pour in 300 ml of the stock and add the bay leaf. Bring to a gentle simmer, cover, and cook over medium-low heat for 9 to 11 minutes, until the carrots are tender when pierced with a knife but still hold their shape.
- 5Meanwhile, melt the remaining 20 g butter in an 18 cm saucepan over medium-low heat. Whisk in the flour and cook for 1 minute without letting it brown. Gradually whisk in the remaining 100 ml stock, followed by the cream. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes, stirring, until the sauce is smooth and thick enough to coat the back of a spoon.
- 6Remove the bay leaf from the sauté pan. Pour in the white sauce, stir gently, and return to a very gentle simmer. Add the salmon and any juices from the plate, cover, and cook over low heat for 3 to 5 minutes without boiling, until the centre of the fish is just opaque and reaches approximately 52 to 55°C.
- 7Remove from the heat. Stir in the lemon juice and zest, parsley, the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and the remaining pepper. Taste and adjust the seasoning if needed, then leave to rest for 2 minutes before serving in shallow bowls.