Grilled Salmon Escabeche

By Ali Slagle

Updated June 27, 2021

  • Johnny Miller for The New York Times. Food Stylist: Susan Spungen.
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Total Time
15 minutes, plus grill heating
Rating
4(260)
Comments
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This recipe yields both tender salmon and crisp skin, while also solving for salmon’s tendency to stick and fall apart on the grill. First, cooking the salmon skin-side down the whole time protects its delicate flesh from the intense heat and gets the skin so browned that it minimizes sticking. Then, once it’s cooked most of the way through, the fish is transferred to a dish of quick-pickled fennel. Just the flesh is submerged in the brine so it cooks, while the skin above the liquid remains potato-chip crisp. This utilizes the age-old technique of escabeche, in which fish, meat or vegetables “cook” in a sauce of vinegar, oil and seasonings. Feel free to add coriander seeds, onion or other flavorings you like in your pickled vegetables. Serve the salmon and fennel with grilled bread, boiled potatoes, a salad or mayonnaise.

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Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

  • 4 (6- to 8-ounce) skin-on salmon fillets

  • ½ cup freshly squeezed lime juice (from about 4 limes)

  • ¼ cup apple cider vinegar or unseasoned rice vinegar

  • ¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

  • 1 ½ teaspoons sugar

  • ½ medium fennel bulb, bulb and stalks thinly sliced, fronds chopped (about 8 ounces)

  • 4 fresh thyme or oregano sprigs or bay leaves

  • 3 garlic cloves, thinly sliced

  • Kosher salt and black pepper

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

10 grams carbs; 109 milligrams cholesterol; 574 calories; 17 grams monosaturated fat; 9 grams polyunsaturated fat; 8 grams saturated fat; 40 grams fat; 2 grams fiber; 742 milligrams sodium; 42 grams protein; 4 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

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Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Prepare a charcoal grill for two-zone cooking over medium-high heat by pouring the coals onto one half of the grill. For a gas grill, heat all of the burners to medium-high, then turn off one of the end burners before cooking.

  2. Step 2

    While the grill heats, pat the salmon dry, and set aside to air-dry. In a metal 3-quart dish (like a 9-by-13-inch pan), large (12-inch) oven-safe skillet or a disposable aluminum pan, stir together the lime juice, vinegar, oil and sugar. Add the fennel, thyme and garlic. Season generously with salt and pepper, and stir to combine.

  3. Step 3

    When your grates are heating (or on a gas grill, when your grill is nearing temperature), put the dish over indirect heat (where there aren’t any coals or where the burner is turned off). Cover the grill and let the fennel mixture warm until the grill reaches temperature, about 5 minutes.

  4. Step 4

    When you’re ready to grill, season the salmon all over with salt and lightly coat with olive oil. Take the salmon, a tightly folded paper towel soaked with olive oil, a fish spatula and a rimmed baking sheet to the grill. Using gloved hands, transfer the dish of pickled fennel to the baking sheet (or another heat-safe surface, like concrete).

  5. Step 5

    Clean the grates with a grill brush, then oil the grates with the paper towel. Add the salmon skin-side down over direct heat (above the flame). Cover the grill and cook until the skin is browned and releases easily from the grates and the flesh is opaque three-quarters of the way up the sides, 3 to 6 minutes, depending on the thickness of your fish. Check the fish often and move it around the fire to avoid flare-ups.

  6. Step 6

    As the fish finishes, nestle it skin-side up among the pickled fennel. Let sit for 5 minutes or up to 30, until the fish is cooked through. Eat with the pickled fennel. Leftovers can be refrigerated and eaten cold or at room temperature the next day. (Remove the skin as it will be soggy at this point.)

Tip

  • Medium-high is 375 to 450 degrees. You should be able to hold your hand 4 to 5 inches above the grates for 4 to 5 seconds.

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Ratings

4 out of 5
260 user ratings
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Comments

Sherri

I did it by putting the fennel and marinade in a glass baking dish in a 200 degree oven, pan-frying the salmon, skin side down, until the skin was crisp and the flesh was about 2/3 or 3/4 done, then putting the salmon flesh side down in the marinade and kept it in the warm oven for about 10 minutes. My husband said it was the best salmon he ever had, and I make a LOT of salmon.

Katryn

Recipe is badly written and more complicated than it should be. I had to keep rereading it to figure it out. I don’t see the need for the fennel mixture to have to go on the grill. Why not just warming it on the stove? Other than that, it’s very good. The salmon and pickled fennel mixture go very well together.

James

This was delicious and fun to make. I think the recipe gets a little confusing because it is overly detailed in places, including unnecessary steps. I added white onion and red pepper to the marinade and warmed it at 350 for 10 minutes. Warming just helps tenderize the fennel and diffuse the flavors a little faster. I seared the salmon in cast iron over high heat for 5 minutes then marinated for about 20 minutes, skin up and out of the marinade.

Mark

Cook the fennel longer. It was too crunchy.

Mary

Adapted for indoors, it was excellent, simple but super tasty. We had a relatively fresh, mild fennel bulb, and used a little bit of fennel powder. Highly recommended unless you really dislike fennel.

Joe

This was pretty good, though I’d definitely add some onions to vary the flavors.

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