RECIPE: Hot-smoked salmon pasta salad

I love eating out but I also love cooking at home. This year we’ll be sharing more recipes on Eat Canberra to inspire you to cook more at home. Some recipes will be simple, some will require a little more time and effort. Some will be healthy and some will be indulgent. Life is all about balance, right?

I cook a lot but my issue is that I don’t usually have the time or patience to style my photos while I’m cooking, and of dish when it’s finished. I’ll try my hardest to make things look pretty but please excuse some of my photos for not being ‘styled’. I promise the food still tastes good!

I first created this recipe using a leftover salad I made for Christmas. It was a simple green salad of blanched asparagus, fresh zucchini, peas, mint, Danish feta and an olive oil and lemon dressing. It was fresh and flavoursome – perfect for a hot summer day. I had a packet of hot-smoked salmon that needed to be used and some pasta in the cupboard. Feeling a little lazy on Boxing Day, I cooked up the pasta, broke up the salmon and lightly fried some garlic and chilli in olive oil to create a sauce. I then added the leftover salad.

I loved it so much that I made it again this week and refined a few things. I know it will be a meal that I make often. This salad makes a fresh, tasty dinner and it’s great to take for work lunches. Enjoy!

Hot-smoked salmon pasta salad

Serves 5+ (depending on serving sizes)

You need:

• 500g of bow tie pasta (see notes)
• 150g pack of hot-smoked salmon with cracked pepper (add more if you want to)
• 1.5 cups frozen peas
• Green vegetables/salad of your choice (see notes)
• 2-4 cloves of finely chopped garlic (depending how much you like garlic)
• 2-3 tablespoons olive oil (or oil of choice)
• 1 long fresh finely chopped red chilli or 1 tsp dried chilli flakes (see notes)
• 1 x lemon
• 2 tsp fresh or 1 tsp dry herbs of choice (parsley, dill or chives)

Now what?

1. Cook pasta according to packet instructions. Be careful not to overcook it. Drain in colander under cold water when it’s cooked. Shake all excess water off. Place back in the saucepan off heat. Drizzle with olive oil and a pinch of salt. Give it a quick stir and put aside.
2. Boil water in a medium sized pot. Add frozen peas. Cook for 2-3 mins and add broccoli and/or asparagus if using. Blanch the vegetables so they’re still a vibrant green and only just cooked. Once cooked, drain in a colander under cold water. Shake off excess water and add the vegetables to the pan with the pasta. Stir gently until vegetables are well combined.
3. If using zucchini, cut the ends off and discard. Cut the zucchini in half so you have two cylinders. Using a vegetable peeler, peel the zucchini into long thin strips. Add all of the peels to the pasta and vegetable mix and stir gently until well combined.
4. Flake the salmon into small pieces, discarding the skin, and add to the pasta and vegetable mix. Stir gently until well combined.
5. Add remaining olive oil to a frypan over medium heat. Add chopped garlic and cook for 30 seconds before adding the chilli. Cook the garlic until just golden brown or under, be careful not to burn it. Cook for another 30 seconds until fragrant. Zest the rind from the lemon into the pan. Juice the lemon. Add the herbs and then the juice of the lemon. Give it a stir so everything is well combined, cooking for another 20-30 seconds. This is the dressing for the pasta salad.
6. Add the dressing to the pasta salad and stir gently until well-combined. Season with salt and pepper if needed.
7. Enjoy straight away or put it in a sealed container, refrigerate and serve later!  

NOTES:

1. You can use any pasta suitable for a salad or your could substitute the pasta for quinoa or brown rice.
2. I used 1 zucchini and 1 bunch of broccoli cut into small florets. You can add as many vegetables as you want. I was going to use asparagus but it was $5 a bunch. Asparagus, baby spinach and rocket could also work. No need to cook baby spinach or rocket if you use them.
3. Use as little or as much garlic and chilli as you want. If using fresh chilli, leave the seeds in to make it hotter.
4. A teaspoon of chopped capers would be nice added to the fry pan with the garlic. I didn’t have any at home when I made this so I didn’t use them. I’ll add them when I make it again.

Leave a comment if you make it and let me know what you think!