Salmon and Rice

Salmon, Rice, Bell pepper. Serves 2 or 3. About 20 minutes.

Utensils:

• Water faucet (cold water)
• Measuring cup (rice, water)
• Stovetop with at least two burners
• Big metal pan (for salmon)
• Metal spatula (to flip salmon)
• Small pot with lid (for rice)
• Paring knife (bell pepper)
• Knife sharpener (so paring knife can cut bell pepper)
• Cutting board (bell pepper)
• Two hotplates (one for salmon, one for rice)
• Serving spoon (for rice)
• Two or three plates, water cups, forks or spoons
• Napkins
• Scrubber with handle (cleaning pot and pan and spatula)
• Barkeeper's Friend (cleaning pan)
• Dish soap
• Dish drain (for letting pot and pan dry)

Ingredients)

• Rice (jasmine or other white, it cooks faster than brown rice)
• Turmeric (just a dash to color rice)
• Water (2 cups for rice, plus rinse rice first)
• Olive oil (1 tablespoon, Costco, for Salmon not Steelhead)
• Fresh Salmon or Steelhead (1 pound, Costco)
• Bell pepper (1, Costco)

Start the rice. Measure 1 cup rice with dry measuring cup. Put it in the small pot. Rinse it in the pot with water (don't need to measure the water) by swirling it around with your fingers.

Repeat stirring it and emptying the water, about four times, until the water stops being so cloudy. After you dump the water about 1/4 cup of water will still be sticking to the rice, that is OK.

Add 2 cups water to the rice with measuring cup. Add dash of tumeric, cover. Turn the stovetop on medium high.

Put frying pan on stove, on medium. You can get farmed Steelhead Trout or wild Salmon from Costco. Get about 2 pounds, cook 1 pound one night and the other pound the next night. Kyle eats about half a pound. I don't eat much, but Kyle's mom likes fish, so this usually serves three.

Steelhead tastes better and is simpler, but it's an evil fish. Farmed Steelhead (fenced in Norway fjords) has parasites that kill any wild salmon that swim nearby. You just plop the Steelhead in the pan, no oil, no spices, no preparation. It's an oily fish, it produces its own oil.

Wild salmon is more environmentally friendly, but it's a bit dry and rubbery. You can cure that a little by soaking it in the pan with water and a tablespoon of salt for 15 minutes before you start. Then dump the water and pat the fish dry with a towel. Add 1 tablespoon olive oil to the pan before you put in the fish.

Cook the fish on medium low and cover.

Once the rice starts bubbling at all, turn it to low. Do not leave it unattended or you'll destroy your pot with burnt-on rice. Keep a potholder nearby so you can lift the lid if it starts bubbling over.

The fish is thick in the middle and thin around the edges. Once the edges start getting cooked, allow Kyle to flip the fish.

Keep an eye on the rice and lift the lid briefly if it starts to bubble over. As long as it's bubbling it's not done. Once you only see cooked rice on top, no bubbles, it's done, turn off the heat but leave the rice covered on the stovetop. It will keep soaking up any remaining water.

Tell Kyle to cut up a bell pepper while waiting for the fish to flake.

Use the spatula to try to get the fish to flake. If it doesn't flake all the way through easily it's not done yet.

Afterwards, clean the pan with a scrubber. Use Barkeeper's Friend to remove the impossible-to-clean salmon and oil from the pan. Also clean the pot and dishes.