Salmon with Tarragon & Shallot Butter Sauce Recipe

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Salmon with Tarragon & Shallot Butter Sauce

I was 11 years old when I first sunk my teeth into the tarragon chicken salad sandwich at a local Vancouver sandwich shop.  I don’t know if the shop still exists or, if they do, whether or not that chicken salad is still on their menu, but it will live on in my bank of food memories for years to come.  My dad, our family’s own sandwich Michelangelo (seriously, the guy can build a mean sandwich), decided to take my mum and me out for lunch at a sandwich shop near his office.  When I ordered the tarragon chicken salad sandwich, I didn’t actually know what tarragon was.  Nor did I care.  I loved mayonnaise (still do) and the only thing that mattered to me was that the chicken salad being heaved onto my sandwich with an ice cream scoop was laden with the creamy goodness.  Then I took a bite.  Creamy goodness…check.  Fresh, tender chicken…check.  Fresh licorice, herbal taste…huh?  Of course, it was the tarragon.  I was hooked.

Despite my fondness for this frond-like herb, I don’t cook with it very often.  So, when Kalyn of Kalyn’s Kitchen offered to send me home with some of the fresh tarragon from her garden, I could hardly refuse.  Paired with butter, shallots, and lemon, tarragon turns a simple salmon fillet into something extraordinary.

Season four 5-6 ounce fillets of salmon with salt and pepper. 


Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1/4 cup of olive oil and then add the salmon, skin side down.


Cook until the salmon is cooked almost all the way through, about 4-5 minutes. Flip the salmon and cook for about 2 more minutes, or until the salmon is just cooked through. Place the salmon on a plate and set aside.

Pour the excess oil out of the pan and place the pan back on the stove, over medium heat. Add 4 tablespoons of butter to the pan. Once the butter melts, add 3 tablespoons of chopped shallots and squeeze in the juice of 1/2 large lemon.


Add 3 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon, season the sauce with salt and pepper, and cook for 1 minute.


Plate the salmon, spoon the sauce over each piece, and serve immediately.

Other tarragon recipes:
Simply Recipes’ Chicken Salad with Tarragon
Michael Ruhlman’s Tarragon-Garlic Pickles
La Tartine Gourmande’s Wild Blueberry and Tarragon Tartlets
Salmon with Tarragon & Shallot Butter Sauce

4 (5-6 oz each) fillets of salmon
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1/4 cup olive oil
4 tbsp unsalted butter
3 tbsp chopped shallots
Juice of 1/2 large lemon
3 tbsp chopped fresh tarragon
Season the fillets of salmon with salt and pepper.   Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add olive oil and then add the salmon, skin side down.  Cook until the salmon is cooked almost all the way through, about 4-5 minutes. Flip the salmon and cook for about 2 more minutes, or until the salmon is just cooked through. Place the salmon on a plate and set aside.
Pour the excess oil out of the pan and place the pan back on the stove, over medium heat. Add 4 tablespoons of butter to the pan. Once the butter melts, add the chopped shallots and squeeze in the lemon juice.  Add the chopped fresh tarragon, season the sauce with salt and pepper, and cook for 1 minute.
Plate the salmon, spoon the sauce over each piece, and serve immediately.
Serves 4.

 

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Comments

  1. How great, that at 11 you were ordering chicken sandwiches instead of "kid food"..and yum…this salmon looks really great. I LOVE tarragon but I find I don't use it as often as I should either.

    Reply

  4. CC, this is another wonderful recipe. I love salmon and this combo looks terrific.

    Congrats at Top 9! You deserve it!!!

    Reply

  8. wow if you served this at a party, your guest are going to think it's a fancy meal! I love that it's elegant but simple at the same time.

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  10. Delicious salmon. Looks perfectly cooked. I'm intrigued by the shallot butter sauce. I must try that next time.

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  11. This looks delicious. The salmon looks picture perfect. LOL.
    I usually go with rosemary but tarragon sound interesting. Thanks.

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  12. Thanks for all of your comments on the photo and the recipe.

    DoggyBloggy, you can't beat sockeye salmon for that rich color!

    Laura, I love rosemary, too. However, tarragon really offers a different flavor (I tend to use rosemary a lot) that compliments the salmon beautifully.

    Reply

  13. The perfect salmon dish! I never use tarragon, I don't know why cause I love it. Bookmarking this!

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  14. wow..perfectly cooked with that brown crust..and i think..i must use tarragon as often as i should..=)

    acdee-confession nook

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  15. This looks fantastic. Tarragon has become my latest obsession herb. I finally got it to grow in my garden.

    Reply

  16. So glad you found a good use for some of the tarragon! There is always more where that came from. Tarragon literally grows like a weed, and it only takes a little for that wonderful tarragon flavor. I just tried it for the first time a few years ago, and I've been hooked ever since.

    Reply

  18. I have been making a new salmon recipe, each week. I just printed this up to make for this week.

    It sounds scrumptious.

    Reply

  19. This looks really great cookin' canuck. Nice healthy dish. What's the sandwich shop in Vancouver name? I want to check it out:)

    Cheers,
    Tana

    Reply

  26. I was looking for a new way to do salmon tonight and this looks wonderful! Thanks for sharing here and at Tasty Kitchen!

    Reply

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