Blackened Salmon and Polenta
For the last few weeks, I have been transitioning back to New England. In the midst of moving, I always think of the things I am leaving and less about the things I am going to gain. One of these things: shrimp and grits! I was not the biggest fan of savory grits (the sweeter the better), but the DMV really showed me how to do it right...and ROGUE I went. As this year started, I knew it would be another few months of transitioning. So I decided to give myself another challenge and have been doing a pretty good job about keeping this one in the forefront of any time I spend in the kitchen. It gives me a space to cook some of the things I see on Instagram or other food outlets, like Food.Love.Tog (which is where I found the original recipe).
I really enjoyed making this dish since it gave me another reason to use polenta. Polenta is easy to make, but I tend to forget that I have it until I’m ready for a particular recipe. This will hopefully push me to use it more! Below you will find my take.
Money Matters
This whole recipe cost me about $25 to make 5 servings-- or $5/serving. And I had a couple of extra pieces of fish left over for salads or something. Mind you, I honestly paid closer to $10 since I had all of the proteins on hand i.e., salmon, bacon, polenta.
#ROGUElyfe
You could swap slamon out for a cheaper fish, like catfish or tilapia, though it may not be as flavorful
I used mushrooms because I had them on hand, so using another veggie (or none at all) is an option as well
I would use more cheese or a different type, especially if you like your grits cheesy
My Take
4 strips of thick cut bacon, diced
½ lb blackened salmon filet, cut into 4 serving
3 green onions, roughly chopped (save scallions [finely diced] for garnish)
4 small capped mushrooms, thinly sliced
¾ cup of polenta
1 cup low sodium chicken stock
1 cup coconut milk
½ cup water
2 tablespoons of butter
Reserved ½ bacon fat
1 cup shredded Mexican cheese blend
Salt and black pepper to taste
Directions
In a large pot bring chicken stock, milk, water, and pinch of salt to a light boil. Add polenta, stirring often for smoothness.
In a second skillet, while polenta is cooking, brown diced bacon until golden, drain and set aside. Reserve ½ of the bacon fat to cook the blackened salmon (if you haven’t done so already) and mushrooms.
While the polenta is cooking, add salmon to same pot that bacon was cooked in. Cook salmon for 3-5 minutes on each side, or until desired doneness. Add a little more oil, and saute the mushrooms for 3-5 minutes.
Reduce the heat on polenta to medium and stir in 2 tablespoons of butter. Add cheese, salt and pepper. Stir until cheese has melted. Combine thoroughly. In a bowl, top polenta with mushrooms, salmon, bacon, and garnish with scallions. Serve and enjoy!
Happy Cooking Y’all :)