Fresh, vibrant and packed with flavour, this Grilled Salmon with Asparagus and Lemon pairs perfectly cooked salmon with crisp asparagus, fragrant lemon oil and a crunchy topping of fried capers and toasted walnuts. Finished with a scattering of Parmesan, it’s an easy yet impressive dish that’s ideal for relaxed entertaining or a special weeknight meal.
Serves: 4
Prep time: 30 minutes + 30 minutes infusing
Difficulty: Easy
Featured appliance: Smeg 50’s Style MultiGrill in Black.
Ingredients
Grilled Salmon
4 skin-on salmon fillets (250-300g each)
2 bunches asparagus, trimmed
¼ cup baby capers, rinsed and patted dry
⅓ cup walnuts, toasted and roughly chopped
30g Parmesan, finely grated
1 lemon, cut into wedges, to serve
Lemon oil
½ cup (125ml) extra virgin olive oil
Finely peeled rind of 1 lemon
Method for Grilled Salmon with Asparagus and Lemon
1. To make the lemon oil, place olive oil and lemon rind in a small saucepan over low heat. Warm gently for 10 minutes, ensuring the oil does not simmer. Remove from heat and set aside to infuse for 30 minutes. Strain and discard rind. Set lemon oil aside.
2. Preheat the Smeg MultiGrill to 230°C. Brush salmon and asparagus with 1 tbsp of the lemon oil and season with salt and pepper. Place salmon, flesh-side down, on the ridged grill plate and cook for 4-6 minutes or until golden with defined grill marks. Place asparagus on the grill plate and cook alongside the salmon for 3-4 minutes, turning, until cooked. Remove asparagus from the hot plate and keep warm. Turn salmon, set the MultiGrill to OVEN mode with the upper plate positioned just above the salmon, and cook for a further 3-4 minutes or until cooked to your liking.
3. Meanwhile, heat ¼ cup of the lemon oil in a small frying pan over medium-high heat. Add capers and cook for 1-2 minutes or until crisp. Remove with a slotted spoon and drain on paper towel. Combine fried capers with toasted walnuts.
4. Arrange asparagus on a serving platter and top with salmon. Scatter generously with walnut and fried caper mixture and finely grated Parmesan. Drizzle with remaining lemon oil and serve with lemon wedges.
More Summer Entertaining Inspiration
Be sure to check out all of the recipes in the Summer Entertaining series for more fresh and enticing options perfect for entertaining friends and family under the summer sun!