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Salmon in Puff Pastry with Dill Sauce

Juicy salmon in flaky pastry with a creamy, tangy dill sauce
Print Recipe
Prep Time 20 minutes
Cook Time 35 minutes
Course brunch, Christmas, Christmas Eve, Easter, Lent, Main Course, Main Dish, Ramadan, Seven Fishes
Cuisine American, French
Servings 6 servings

Ingredients
  

  • 1.5 lb/680g Salmon fillet skin on or skinless
  • 2 sheets puff pastry enough to cover salmon about 1lb/450 g
  • 1 tbsp water
  • 1 egg
  • few tbsps all purpose flour for counter

Dill Sauce

  • 5oz/140ml Mayonnaise
  • 3oz/85g fresh dill 1 bunch
  • 2 tbsp lemon juice
  • 1/8 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Spinach

  • 1 tbsp olive oil
  • 1 tsp garlic grated
  • 5oz/142g spinach leaves
  • salt to taste
  • ground black pepper to taste

Lemon Butter

  • 1 tbsp unsalted butter
  • 1 tsp lemon zest
  • 1 tsp garlic grated
  • 1/4 tsp salt
  • 1/4 tsp ground black pepper

Instructions
 

  • Thaw frozen puff pastry according to package directions.
  • Skip this step if using skinless salmon. For Skin On Salmon - Rub one tbsp oil in a heavy skillet (preferably cast iron) and heat until very hot. Dry salmon with paper towels and season skin side heavily with salt and ground black pepper. Place salmon skin side down on skillet and cook for 2-3 minutes until brown and crispy. Slide steel spatula under salmon and set on a plate skin side up to cool.
  • Spinach - heat up oil in a skillet and add garlic. Cook 10 seconds, add spinach, salt, pepper and stir. Cook until moisture evaporates. Cool and refrigerate.
  • Lemon Butter - heat butter, lemon zest and garlic in a small pan and stir on low heat about 30 seconds until raw flavor of garlic cooks out. Remove to a small bowl, mix in salt and pepper. Set aside.
  • Beat egg and water together in a small bowl.
  • Flour counter and put one sheet of pastry down. Sprinkle flour on top. Using a rolling pin, roll out pastry on all sides lightly, barely an inch larger than original sheet. Place on parchment lined baking sheet. Roll second sheet of pastry the same way. Place one pastry sheet on floured counter. Put salmon in center of pastry. Spread lemon butter on top. Spread spinach mixture on top. Brush egg wash on pastry 1/2 inch around salmon. Cover with second sheet of pastry. Tuck in on all sides to form a neat package. Trim all sides to leave about 1/2 inch of dough. Press down sides. Crimp all sides or press down with tines of a fork. Pick up packet and place on parchment lined tray. Refrigerate or freeze about 10 minutes while heating up oven. Heat oven to 425 F/218 C.
  • Brush egg wash all over pastry top and sides. Cut 5 or 6 slits on top of pastry or in a cross hatch pattern. Bake in heated oven for 25-30 minutes until deep golden brown. Set tray on a cooling rack and rest for 10 minutes before slicing and serving with sauce.
  • Sauce- combine all ingredients in blender and blend until smooth.
  • ***If you're new to working with pastry, instead of assembling packet on counter, place one pastry sheet on parchment lined tray, assemble, trim and crimp. This avoids picking up pastry packet from counter and transferring to baking sheet.
    ***Refrigerate pastry in between if it's too soft to work with or if your house is very warm. Pastry must be very cold before baking to ensure flakiness.