My friend Ella shared this recipe with me as we sat catching up on the peach colored couches of my childhood home. She told me that when she pulled this salmon out of the oven her friends and family were intrigued by the smell and then won over by the taste. I think salmon is best when it is mostly left alone. The gentle marinade keeps the fish moist and the rub is flavorful and brings out the best of the fish while preserving the natural flavors of the salmon. I am always shocked at the price per pound of salmon, but proud of myself for feeding my family something loaded with omega-3s.
At our house it is the husband who grills. He does it best. He stands by the grill guarding his responsibility. He watches the flame, isn’t tempted to flip too early, arms himself with the meat thermometer and always has foil to wrap the meat when it is finished. He really is better at it. I’ll give him that. I still disagree over who beat who the first time we raced around the ice skating rink when flirting meant competition and who is faster in a sprint, but he wins at grilling and we all benefit from it.
This is an easy to throw together recipe once you have all the ingredients. The most difficult part is juicing and zesting the lemon.
You combine lemon juice and pineapple juice in a ziplock bag with the salmon and let it marinate for one hour.
After pulling the salmon out of the marinade, discard the marinade and then gently press the rub into the fish. Drizzle with a bit of olive oil.
Grill the fish for about 10 minutes total depending on the thickness of your salmon. Ten minutes is usually about right for one inch thick salmon. I had the husband start skin side down this time so that the brown sugar in the rub wouldn’t burn. We usually start with the flesh down. You want to grill the first side for about seven minutes and the second for about three minutes. Slide a spatula between the skin and flesh and the skin will come right off. We had some raspberries on hand and it was delicious to sprinkle a few over the fish.
- ½ cup pineapple juice
- 2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
- 4 (6-ounce) salmon fillets
- 2 tablespoons brown sugar
- 4 teaspoons chili powder
- 2 teaspoons grated lemon rind
- ½ teaspoon ground cumin
- ½ teaspoon Salt
- ½ teaspoon ground cinnamon 2 tablespoons olive oil
- Lemon Slices
- Raspberries (optional)
- Combine the pineapple juice, lemon juice and salmon in a zip-top plastic bag; seal and marinate in the refrigerator for 1 hour, turning occasionally. Remove the fish from the bag and discard the marinade.
- Combine the brown sugar, chili powder, lemon rind, cumin, salt and cinnamon in a bowl. Rub over fish. Drizzle olive oil over the fish and rub into the fish so it won't stick to the grill. Grill over medium heat for about 10 minutes total. Seven on the skin side, then three on the flesh side. Slide a spatula between the skin and the flesh to remove the skin. Serve with a few raspberries on the top.