The Great American Slow Cooker Book (83 page)

1
Pour a little olive oil into the slow cooker, then smear it around with a wadded-up paper towel, coating the bottom thoroughly.

2
Whisk the maple syrup, soy sauce, lime juice, chiles, garlic, and ginger in a small bowl. Slip the salmon, skin side down, into the slow cooker; coat with the maple syrup mixture, right up to the edge of the meat.

3
Cover and cook on high for 1 hour in a small slow cooker, 1 hour 15 minutes in a medium cooker, or 1½ hours in a large cooker, or until the fish flakes when scraped with a fork. Use a large spatula to transfer the salmon to a serving platter or a carving board.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
If you like a more sour finish, add up to 50 percent more lime juice.

•
These “sauce” ingredients would also make a great barbecue rub for chicken or pork.

INGREDIENTS EXPLAINED
Chipotle chiles are smoked jalapeños. They are often canned in adobo sauce, a blend of paprika, spices, salt, garlic, and vinegar, a mix popular in Spanish, Latin American, and Filipino cooking. The chiles need to be stemmed—and perhaps seeded if you want to lower the heat.

1
Stir the fennel, orange supremes, onion, and tarragon in the slow cooker. Cover and cook on high for 2 hours, or until the fennel has softened and the liquid is bubbling.

2
Mix the horseradish and dill in a small bowl; spread on the salmon on the side opposite from which the skin was. Set coated side up on top of the fennel mixture in the slow cooker.

3
Cover and continue cooking on high for 45 minutes, or until the salmon can be flaked with a flatware fork. Transfer the pieces one by one to serving plates; spoon some of the fennel and orange sauce around the servings.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
Believe it or not, spiky horseradish works well on delicate salmon, particularly as the spiky condiment mellows in the slow cooker.

•
Use skin-on fillets if you prefer even more salmon flavor.

•
Don’t use dried herbs for the preparations. You need all the oomph of fresh ones to stand up to the other flavors in the mix.

Serve It Up!
Serve this with
Mashed Celery Root
: Peel the root and cut it into 1-inch cubes. Place them in a large saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil over high heat. Cover, reduce the heat a bit, and cook until tender, about 15 minutes. Drain in a colander, then pour the cubes into a large bowl. Add butter, a little cream, salt, and pepper, and use an electric mixer at medium speed to whip into a fairly creamy puree.

1
Smear some olive oil around the inside bottom and sides of the slow cooker canister. Cover the bottom with a layer of lemon slices.

2
Mix the olive oil, mustard, dill, and lemon juice in a small bowl; rub onto the salmon steaks. Set them in the slow cooker on top of the lemon slices.

3
Cover and cook on high for 1½ hours, or until the meat flakes when scraped with a fork.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
The usual problem with salmon steaks is that the exterior bits dry out before the interior is cooked properly. But the slow cooker allows the fish to roast at a lower temperature, thereby ensuring it stays moist and delicate.

•
It may be hard to check the steaks all the way through for doneness. You can try the
knife trick
, or simply cut into one in the slow cooker to make sure.

•
These steaks cook a bit longer because (1) the machine is not already heated when they make their appearance and (2) they are not submerged in an already hot liquid.

Serve It Up!
Make an easy slaw by shredding red cabbage and moderately sweet, cored apples like Galas through the large holes of a box grater or with the shredding blade of a food processor. Mix them with mayonnaise, sour cream, a little cider vinegar, salt, pepper, celery seeds, and some minced parsley leaves.

1
Dab some olive oil on a paper towel and thoroughly grease the inside of a slow cooker.

2
Pulse the shrimp in a large food processor fitted with the chopping blade until a thick, sticky paste.

3
Scrape the shrimp paste into a large bowl; stir in the salmon, breadcrumbs, onion, celery, mustard, eggs, dill, thyme, salt, hot sauce, and garlic powder. Add the milk in tablespoon increments until you can form a wet paste that holds its shape.

4
Dump the salmon mixture into the slow cooker, then use your clean, wet hands to form it all into a loaf, keeping at least ½ inch free space between it and the side of the canister. Smooth the top of the loaf.

5
Cover and cook on low for 3 hours in a small slow cooker, 3½ hours in a medium cooker, or 4 hours in a large one, or until an instant-read meat thermometer inserted into the center of the loaf registers 165°F. Cool for 10 minutes before transferring to a serving platter. Cover and chill for at least 8 hours or up to 3 days.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
Old-fashioned cocktail party fare, this rendition of salmon mousse can also be chilled and then sliced into wedges for sandwiches or served with bagels and cream cheese for breakfast—or with
Aïoli
on a buffet spread.

•
Canned salmon varies dramatically in quality. If possible, look for cans made with salmon fillets; otherwise, you may end up with skin and even small bones.

•
The amount of milk needed varies widely based on the relative moisture in the other ingredients. You’ll need to add at least half of the stated amount to get the loaf to cohere, but you don’t want that mixture to be too wet. Stop and assess; stir vigorously to break the salmon into the mixture.

•
Because of the eggs and shrimp, the internal temperature of the loaf is crucial to alleviate food safety concerns. Because slow cookers have varying cooking temperatures, yours may take a little longer to get to the proper temperature. For this recipe, rely on the internal temperature, not the timing.

1
Stir the wine, broth, shallots, salt, and pepper in the slow cooker. Tuck the tarragon sprigs into the mixture, cover, and cook on high for 2 hours.

2
Slip the trout into the slow cooker, arranging them head to tail so they fit in a fairly tight group. Cover and continue cooking on high for 1 hour, or until the flesh can be flaked with a fork.

3
Use a large spatula to transfer the trout to a serving platter or individual serving plates. Tent with aluminum foil to keep warm. Strain the liquid in the slow cooker through a fine-mesh sieve or a cheesecloth-lined colander into a bowl below. Discard the strained solids.

4
Pour the strained liquid into a medium or large saucepan and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring occasionally. Reduce the heat a bit and boil until reduced to about ⅓ cup for 2 trout, ⅔ cup for 4 trout, or 1 cup for 6 trout. Whisk the vinegar into the sauce, then remove it from the heat and whisk in the butter until smooth. Drizzle the sauce over the trout to serve.

TESTERS’ NOTES

•
Trout make a healthy meal without much fuss at all. Unfortunately, the skin will not get crisp; but you can easily peel it back after the trout have poached.

•
Buttery and rich, this sauce seems to cry out for mashed potatoes on the side. Make sure the butter is soft so that it blends quickly into the sauce.

INGREDIENTS EXPLAINED
Although there are many varieties of trout available on the market, any will do here, including the bulk that are farm-raised. While we wouldn’t recommend the oilier sea trout here, even it will work if you like a pronounced fish taste.