Spicy orange salmon

Over the years I've learned the hard way to read a recipe completely through from the get go. You never want to start working through a recipe and then come to a direction like "Refrigerate overnight." or "bring to boil and then cool" when you need to have dinner on the table in half an hour. So I'm giving you a little warning with this recipe. The salmon needs to sit in the marinade for 1/2 hour. It really benefits from the whole time because, with the orange juice, soy sauce, chiles and ginger, there's some good flavors to soak in. After you remove the salmon from the marinade, you reserve it and boil it down with some honey for a spicy citrus sauce that's great on the fish and on rice too. You'll be pleased with this simple, tasty salmon preparation. This recipe can easily be halved.

Crispy Orange-glazed Salmon

The sweetness of orange juice tempers the heat of the chile pepper and red pepper flakes in this Thai-inspired dish, but it still has quite a kick.

Prep: 15 minutes; Stand: 30 minutes; Cook: 9 minutes.

2/3 cup orange juice
3 tablespoons rice wine vinegar
2 tablespoons lite soy sauce
1 small red Thai chile pepper, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
1 (1-inch) piece fresh ginger, grated
4 (4- to 6-ounce) salmon fillets
2 tablespoons olive oil, divided
Salt, to taste
Freshly ground pepper, to taste
2 tablespoons honey
Hot cooked rice

Garnishes: sprouts, fresh cilantro, carrot and pepper strips, and edamame

1. Stir together first 6 ingredients in a glass baking dish or shallow bowl. Add salmon, and drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, turning to coat evenly. Marinate at least 30 minutes. Remove salmon, reserving marinade, and season with salt and pepper.

2. Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, and add remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil. Cook salmon 3 to 4 minutes per side or until fish begins to flake with fork; remove from pan. Pour reserved marinade into skillet, and add honey. Heat about 3 minutes or until syrupy. Serve salmon warm over a mound of rice, topped with sauce. Garnish, if desired.

Yield: Makes 4 servings

Cottage Living, MARCH 2007