Gordon Ramsay’s miso salmon soup starts with a side of salmon poached skin-on in miso, fish stock, kaffir lime, chile and ginger. Flaked over pak choi, tenderstem broccoli and enoki mushrooms, it makes a spicy, light main for four, and it all happens in one pan in about 30 minutes.
The skin does two jobs. Ultimate Cookery Course (2012) keeps it on “to stop it from breaking up as the stock gently simmers”. His miso salmon video on YouTube adds that it holds the moisture in too. Spoon broth over the top every couple of minutes, because that’s what cooks the upper side evenly.
Watch the pan once the miso is in, since he warns “don’t boil too rapidly, or it may separate” on the way up to a simmer. By the end the broth has taken on the chile, ginger and lime. The salmon then comes apart in long pink shards, with what he calls a sweet, earthy flavor from the miso.
Gordon Ramsay’s Miso Salmon Soup (Miso Poached Salmon)
Course: SoupsCuisine: AsianDifficulty: Easy4
10
minutes20
340
kcalIn Ultimate Cookery Course (2012) it’s simply called miso salmon. The ingredients add up to a full soup of salmon, pak choi, broccoli and enoki in a spicy miso broth.
Ingredients
- For the broth:
3 tablespoons light miso paste
a generous 3 cups (750 ml) fish stock
2 kaffir lime leaves
1 to 2 red chiles, seeded and finely chopped, to taste
1¼-inch (3 cm) piece of ginger, peeled and finely sliced
sea salt
- For the salmon and vegetables:
1 pound 2 ounces (500 g) side of salmon, skin on, scaled and pin-boned
1 pak choi (bok choy)
5 ounces (150 g) tenderstem broccoli
2 small bunches of enoki mushrooms, separated
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
cilantro leaves, to garnish (optional)
Directions
- Prep: Separate the pak choi leaves from the stems. Chop the stems into bite-size pieces and shred the leaves, then slice the broccoli into bite-size pieces.
- Broth: Put the miso paste in a large, wide pan and whisk in the stock, then taste and add a little salt if needed. Bring to a gentle simmer and add the lime leaves, chiles and ginger.
- Poach: Cut the salmon in half widthwise and add it to the pan, skin side down. Simmer gently for 8 to 10 minutes, spooning the liquid over the top, until opaque and cooked through.
- Rest: Lift the salmon onto a plate with a fish spatula, pour a small ladleful of broth over it and leave it for about 2 minutes. Lift out the lime leaves, then bring the broth left in the pan back to a boil for the greens.
- Greens: Add the broccoli, and after 30 seconds add the pak choi stems. Cook for 1 to 2 minutes more, then add the shredded leaves and cook for about 1 minute, until wilted. Meanwhile, flake the salmon into large chunks, discarding the skin.
- Serve: Add half the mushrooms to the broth. Rub the bowls with a little sesame oil and divide the remaining mushrooms between them. Add the salmon and vegetables, spoon over the broth and serve right away, with cilantro if you like.
Notes
- Tenderstem broccoli is the British name for broccolini.
- Makrut lime leaves are the same as kaffir, and Asian grocery stores keep them frozen. A strip of lime zest works if you can't find any.
- Boxed seafood stock or low-sodium chicken stock can replace the fish stock. Taste before adding salt, since miso is salty.
- White or yellow miso both count as light miso, and a red Fresno suits the chile.
- For young children or anyone pregnant, older or with a weak immune system, simmer all the enoki in the broth for a few minutes. Enoki should be cooked through.
- Leftover broth and salmon keep separately, chilled, for 2 days. Bring the broth back to a boil before adding the salmon.
FAQs
How do I know the salmon is done?
Look for opaque flesh that flakes with a fork, or 145°F (63°C) in the thickest part. He also checks by touch, sliding a fish spatula under it to feel that it’s firm and springy.
Does it need noodles?
No, the book serves it as salmon, vegetables and broth. If you want noodles, his miso soup has udon and a poached egg in a lighter broth made with water.
Is this the same as his miso glazed salmon?
No, that’s a different dish with no broth. His glazed salmon in Healthy Appetite (2008) coats skinless fillets in a miso and mirin marinade, with pak choi and shiitake alongside.
What if I only have salmon fillets?
They work, as long as they’re skin-on and add up to about 1 pound 2 ounces (500 g). Thickness sets the time more than the number of pieces, so a fillet as thick as the side cooks in about the same time.
Zaytouna Studio Team is the kitchen team behind Chef Ramsay Recipes. We cook Gordon Ramsay’s recipes from his cookbooks and videos in a home kitchen and write them up for yours, with US and metric measurements.