It's a Boy's choice week. He's always got something great up his sleeve and he continues to prove himself a true player in in the WFDW adventure by choosing recipes I would never give a second look to, which I'm absolutely thrilled about. His pick this week was no exception:
Norwegian-Style Poached Salmon with Anchovy Butter



In general, I am a big flavor kind of person, so this recipe was a little underwhelming at first but by the time I finished eating, I had decided that I really enjoyed it. Having the happy accident of a nice wine paring certainly helped :)
It's light and simple and was easy to prepare, so I can't complain, but I think that it would be better suited to a really great, flavorful piece of salmon, rather than the farm-raised fillets I happened to pull out of the freezer. So if you're lucky enough to have fresh Copper River or Sockeye or one of those great wild caught varieties, or if you happen to live in Norway and catch salmon in the fjord down the block, consider this an ideal preparation method.
The recipe instructs you to strain the poaching liquid before pouring it over the fish, and I found this step unnecessary. I left all the chunky bits in and took the advice of one of the reviewers on the Epicurious site and served the onions along with the fish. Turns out they were pretty tasty and provided an interesting contrast in texture. I also rather liked the little tart little explosions of coriander and mustard seeds gone all nice and soft during cooking so overall the not straining thing ended up definite plus. And if it's freaking you out, don't let that anchovy word deter you. That little dollop of compound butter was the perfect compliment and I promise, it didn't taste of stinky little fishies at all.

In craftyness, did y'all see Caro demonstrate making her craft bucket on HGTV's Uncommon Threads today? HOW COOL! Congrats Caro! You were fantastic and what a cute and clever project!