Salmon With Quinoa And Citrus-Tomatillo Salsa Recipe
Kick off summer with this flavor-and nutrition-packed seafood dish from triathlete-chef Jonathan Rollo.
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Kick off summer with this flavor-and nutrition-packed seafood dish from triathlete-chef Jonathan Rollo.
Ingredients
4 4oz salmon fillets
1¼ cups quinoa, uncooked
½ tsp cilantro, minced
½ tsp green onion (scallion), minced
Salsa
4 tomatillos, diced
1 grapefruit, peeled and diced (can substitute blood orange)
2 oranges, peeled
1 lime, fresh juice only
½ tsp red jalapeño, minced
1 tsp cilantro, minced
1 tsp green onion, minced
Kosher salt and pepper, to taste
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Directions
Cook quinoa according to directions on package. Once cooked, allow to cool completely. Segment the grapefruit and oranges, reserving the juice. Combine all salsa ingredients, including the reserved juices. Season to taste with the red jalapeño, salt and pepper. Allow flavors to marinate together. If the citrus is too tart, the salsa may need a pinch of sugar substitute or splash of agave. Heat a nonstick sauté pan and 1 T of canola oil. Add salmon to the pan skin-side down and place pan in oven. Cook in 400-degree oven for approximately 5 minutes. Cook shorter or longer depending on your preferred doneness. Combine the cooled quinoa with the cilantro and green onions. Strain the excess liquid from the salsa into the quinoa to add flavor. Adjust the seasoning of the quinoa with salt and pepper to taste. Plate the quinoa. Top with salmon fillet and then finish with the salsa.
Meet the Triathlete-Chef
Chef and restaurateur Jonathan Rollo is on his way to opening his fourth Southern California location of Greenleaf Gourmet Chopshop in five years. A native of Pasadena, Calif., Rollo returned to the L.A. area after culinary school in Chicago because he missed the local, fresh ingredients his mom always used in her cooking. “I loved the restaurant scene [in Chicago],” he says, “but there was such an obvious void of that fresh, local side of things.” Greenleaf began as a small salad shop but has evolved to include build-your-own hot entrees, paninis and thin-crust pizzas. Rollo’s healthy eating complements his athletic pursuits: He grew up a swimmer and water polo player, and he raced his first triathlon while getting his undergraduate degree in Nashville. He’s since raced the Escape from Alcatraz and Wildflower, and sticks to mostly Olympic-distance races because of his limited time to train. His favorite aspect of racing is getting to explore new parts of cities. “You’re on a street that would normally be bumper-to-bumper cars, and it’s wide open,” he says. “You just kind of get to look around a little bit, and zone out and watch your surroundings in a way that hardly anyone ever takes a moment to do.”
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