Spice Rubbed Salmon

Salmon is one of my favorite quick cooking dinners and it is loaded with omega 3s and protein. I often shop on Sundays and pick up salmon for Monday. It is best when it's fresh and I can get a quick and easy dinner ready on a Monday when the stress level is almost always a 10.

One of the quickest and tastiest ways to cook salmon if you don't have time to marinade is by making your own spice rub. I like to play around with the combination of spices depending on what I am serving with it and what mood I am in. Tonight, I made the following rub and served the fish with microwave steamed broccoli with cheese and some couscous. Both foodie kids ate all of their fish and most of the broccoli (oh the magic of shredded cheese). With the quick steam method for the broccoli, I had dinner on the table in 15 minutes total.


Timing - 15 minutes

Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs salmon fillets (boneless, with or without skin, approximately 3/4 inch thick)
1 T brown sugar
1 t salt
1/2 t chili powder
1/2 t ground cumin
1/2 t ground coriander
1/2 t garlic powder
1/8 t ground pepper
olive oil
lemon wedges

How to Make
Mix all spices together in a small bowl. Spray and oven-safe pan with cooking spray and preheat on the stove over medium high until hot.

Rub olive oil all over the fish and then sprinkle with the spices and rub the spices in. Cook approximately 4-5 minutes on one side and 3-4 minutes on the other, depending on the thickness of the fish and how done you like it. Do not cook more than 5 minutes per side because the fish will dry out. If you want the middle more well done after the 5 minutes per side, finish the pan in the oven at 350 degrees for a few more minutes.

Squeeze lemon over fish before serving.

Serves 4