Wild King Salmon With Savory Whipped Cream

It means that if you have the whole filet laid out horizontally in front of you, don't cut straight down from the long top edge to the long bottom edge, instead cut at an angle. When cut diagonally, the two "end" pieces are more triangular in shape than the "middle" portions.

Having spent years as a chef, and having cooked fresh salmon for decades, (I live just outside of Portland, OR) it's really more of a presentation technique than a cooking technique.

I believe it means to slice the fillet at a 45 degree angle or even shallower angle for thinner slices (and faster cooking).
IMO, I would eschew the whole butter pan fry step(which takes away from the natural salmon flavor) and broil the whole fillet for about 4-5 minutes.

However you cook your salmon, this sauce is incredible. And it is so adaptable to any other proteins, with a myriad of seasonings. Follow the recipe or be creative with this!

I am trying to figure out what is "diagonal" about the slicing. The picture doesn't seem to help. Maybe I'm just askew; can anyone help?

This is an excellent recipe that features the incredible taste of wild Chinook salmon. The appearance of this salmon is what makes May one of my favorite months of the year. As David notes, it's important not to overcook the salmon.

I haven't tried this particular sauce, but will give it a try tomorrow. For those who like to vary things a little I also love drizzling the filets with Bearnaise sauce, as the tarragon really meshes well with salmon.

Place salmon with the long side of the filet closest to you. Starting on the right hand side, turn your knife blade out to the right at a 45 degree angle (twist your wrist to the left, so to speak) so that the blade is still perpendicular to the filet. Then cut through the filet into desired pieces, slicing away from you carefully through the flesh. Having a sharp knife is key, and making one continuous slice from the top to bottom is ideal. If you're left-handed, do the opposite.

Their are many recipes using mustard with fresh salmon, but adding cream is brilliant. The amounts of chives and mustard added to the cream should suit your personal taste. The tarragon would be nice in the cream sauce too.

Didn't have cream so I used plain Chobani yogurt. It worked very well.

I am always amazed how any sauce on fish can dynamically change the flavor of the entire dish. This is true in this wonderful dish by David Tanis. We fed this to our family of 4 - and it was scrumptious. This meal takes 30 minutes to prep and cook. I used an iron skillet which gave the salmon a brown crust and sealed in the flavor. The whipped cream sauce is a delightful accompaniment - and blends in flavorfully to the fish. Make sure to keep those whipped cream peaks low.

The savoury whipped cream is incredible, packed with flavour and easy.
A keeper to use on other dishes. Add a slice of smoked salmon for added flavour.

This is a delicious way to serve salmon.

I altered the recipe and grilled wild sockeye salmon (leaner than king, and a thinner fillet) with a bit of olive oil and spice rub.

Made the cream sauce with using fresh tarragon and finely sliced spring onions rather than chives; it was wonderful. That sauce is a keeper, and looked so nice against the red fish.

Second week of salmon season and the price here in Seattle is down by $10 a pound. We always grill our salmon on the Big Green Egg. We love the sauce, which went very well with the fresh asparagus as well.

Delicious! David must be watching Jacques Pepin too! Pepin serves this sauce with Halibut to great success as well.

Fabulously delicious with greek yogurt subbed for the cream.

Wild violet flowers are edible and tasty--so long as they do not have any pesticides or other chemicals on them from yard treatments. Chive flowers, (trimmed off the base to release the many small blossoms) might also be around if you have an herb garden and the recipe calls for chives anyway.