Salmon Wellington
A whole salmon en croûte is a lovely Christmas party centrepiece. This simple recipe uses readymade pastry to make it quick and easy.
Ingredients
- 2 medium cucumbers, peeled
- 5 tbsp Dijon mustard
- 2 tbsp clear honey
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 50g/1¾oz fresh dill, finely chopped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- 1 x 380g/13oz ready-made puff pastry sheet
- plain flour, for dusting
- 1 x 2.8kg/6lb salmon, skin removed and filleted into 2 pieces
- 1 free-range egg, beaten, combined with a little milk
Method
Preheat the oven to 180C/350F/Gas 4. Line a large baking tray with baking parchment.
Slice the cucumbers lengthways, scrape out the seeds with a teaspoon, and chop into 1cm/½in thick pieces. Place the cucumbers in a mixing bowl with the mustard, honey, vinegar and finely chopped dill. Season well with salt and freshly ground black pepper and set aside.
Roll the pastry out to 40cm/16in x 30cm/12in on a lightly floured surface. Lay on the lined baking tray.
Lay one fillet in the centre of the pastry, pile half of the filling on top and then cover with the second fillet.
Brush the edges of the pastry with the mixture of milk and beaten egg. Fold the pastry over the fish, sealing the edges by pressing them together, leaving a gap in the centre, so that you can see inside. Brush the pastry with more beaten egg and milk and bake for 45 minutes.
Serve with the remaining cucumber mixture.