How To Cook Salmon Like a Chef

More than a billion people in the world are pescatarian. All about eating the fishies that live under the sea. No land animals are consumed. Anyone who is willing to make that type of lifestyle choice deserves accolades up the chain. After living a vegetarian and vegan lifestyle, there can be periods of fatigue with eating the same foods on repeat. Creativity is a constant with choosing an alternative lifestyle.

The great thing about salmon is a customizable ingredient itself. Salmon is able to be created for casual encounters to elegant, sophisticated dinners.

Fish like salmon and others can be battered and accompanied with tartar sauce. Salmon and other fish can be created into sushi and poke bowls. Finally, fish and salmon can also be created into tacos and burgers even you are not feeling the beef or chicken or pork. I mean what is more casual than that?

On the flip side, the taste of fish can be elevated for elegant dinners. Fish like salmon can be seared with lemon sauce. Fish like salmon can be lightly glazed, grilled with mesquite flavor, or even sweetened. Have you heard of caramelizing? As in sugar caked on sugar.

Emily’s staff from the Gilmore Girls cooks all the meals that you see on the show. During the later seasons, you see how she complains there is sugar with the salmon. However, I would not knock it until I try it. I mean if people can make sugary dipping sauces, why not make a sweet coating?

Daring enough to try this recipe inspired by Emily’s staff, with the help of Kristi Carlson? Here are the ingredients you need to get started:

• 1 tablespoon of white sugar

• 1 tablespoon of brown sugar

• 1 teaspoon of kosher salt

• 1/2 teaspoon of black pepper

• 1 pound of salmon with skin, cut into 3-4 fillets

• 2 tablespoons of olive oil

Six ingredients or less and you can create caramelized salmon. If you prefer no skin, a fair warning that the fillets tend to not stay intact when cooking. That is why skin is important. If you do not want skin, that is what you are up against.

Our Financials

Can you guess where I shopped for these ingredients? Yup, Walmart, Sam’s Club, and Publix. Granted not all in one shot, I went to Publix first a couple Saturdays ago. Walmart and Sam’s Club were all in one shot because they were next to each other.

Below is the cost to make this sweet salmon:

• White sugar- $1.98 from Publix

• Brown sugar- $2.17 from Walmart

• Kosher salt- already had the salt

• Black pepper- already had the pepper

• Salmon- $30.26 for three pounds from Sam’s Club

• Olive oil- $9.74

The total amount for this salmon was $44.15.

Granted, I went for super size when I got the salmon. I wanted to have enough salmon to use for salad, wraps, and entrees. During times of uncertainty, having extra food in the freezer is not a bad thing. However, if you just buy one pound of salmon, the price will reduce by 20 dollars and change. The only reason why the recipe is more expensive for me is the surplus and the fact, I had to buy an olive oil bottle for the first time in almost two years. Shows how much cooking I can really do when I care.

Those Millennial Cash Back Earnings

Here is how I struck when scanning receipts into my handy cash back applications:

While using the Ibotta application, I actually struck some luck today. I earned 10 cents back for any item on a receipt from Walmart. Unfortunately, Sam’s Club did not have any cash back for me.

Fetch Rewards was somewhat scoring me today. I earned 50 points from two receipts. I earned 25 points from Walmart and and 25 points for Sam’s Club. I have done better for sure.

For walking into Walmart, I got 10 kicks for just walking in to the store. Shopkick typically does not have the products I shop for, I earn kicks by walking to the store. Sam’s Club you have to buy or scan items. The locations do not offer Walk-In Kicks.

Finally, Coinout earned me six cents from three receipts. Two from Walmart and one from Sam’s Club. My fiancé laughs at me because I’m earning penny by penny. He says to me, “You know pennies are not worth anything anymore right?, Canada stopped making them because they were so pointless.” I mean sure they are not worth a lot but as we collect over time…that turns into green at some point.

Our Ratings

My Rating: Cooking wise, 7 out of 10. The smell of the fish was making me gag. Mainly because I waited until the last day to cook the fish. I would prefer to grill my salmon because of the mesquite flavor. The salmon smell also lingered on the pan, so be aware while cleaning of that occurrence. Taste wise, I would rate the salmon a 9 out of 10. Very safe flavor and is customizable for the dishes I like to eat.

Shayne’s Rating: He gives the salmon an 8, though the two bowls with the Gilmore Girls Mashed Potatoes say differently. That is a combination I would save for your future dinner recipes. Safe flavor, nothing completely firecracker about the flavor for him. Then again, he is used to Filipino cooking. Does that make sense now?

Outcomes and Recommendations

The great thing about this recipe is the simplicity. Less than 6 ingredients. Easy to cook, got it cooked in under 30 minutes. Just make sure you got a fresh pan otherwise the smell will sink in the pan. Took me two days to clean through the dishwasher. Though because the flavor is so sweet, you can add any base or vegetables and have a great meal.