I had my first child this year. Needless to say, the blog isn’t getting much love. But I recently took the kiddo on his first road trip up to Venice for my husband’s work conference. We stayed at a nice hotel and I dragged him to all of my favorite haunts in the old hood.
For lunch, there was one obvious destination - Great White.
I ordered the Chickpea Scramble and it was one of the more memorable meals I’ve had in a long time. The original version is vegan, but I added salmon for this recipe, mainly because I was cooking dinner, making this up on the fly, and photographed everything with my cell phone before I remembered the dish I ate didn’t have fish. But here we are.
If you have them, add all the tasty herbs you may have in your fridge. Great White adorned my bowl with mint, dill, cilantro, and Thai basil and it really made the meal. A hunk of sourdough doesn’t hurt, either.
It seems like a lot of work, but it comes together pretty quickly, and if you break up the steps into little tasks between diapers, you’ll be amazed at how easy the recipe will feel.
Great White Chickpea Scramble with Cucumber Salsa, Preserved Lemon Tahini Dressing and Salmon
Yield: Serves 2-4
Prep Time: 20 minutes Cook time: 2 hours Total Time: 2.5 hours
Ingredients
1 cup dried chickpeas or 1 can of cooked chickpeas
1 tsp baking soda (for dried chickpeas)
Half a red onion, sliced very thin
3 Tbs red wine vinegar
½ tsp sugar
½ tsp salt
½ a preserved lemon, minced and seeds removed
1 heaping Tbs tahini
1 small clove garlic, crushed through a press and 2 cloves, sliced thin
1-2 tsp date syrup or honey
1 English cucumber, chopped
1 avocado, cubed
Juice from half a lemon, preferably Meyer
2 tsp black sesame seeds
Large handful cilantro leaves
2 skin-on salmon filets
8-12 large cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Cook the chickpeas: Use the fast cook method if using dried chickpeas. Bring 1 cup of chickpeas to a boil with 3-4 cups water along with a tsp baking soda. Boil for 2 minutes then turn off the heat and let sit for about an hour. Drain.
To finish cooking, bring chickpeas and 3-4 cups water to a boil, turn down heat, and let simmer 90 minutes. Drain.
Pickle the onions: Combine sliced onions, red wine vinegar, ½ tsp sugar and ½ tsp salt in a jar. Let sit for at least an hour. Store in the refrigerator.
Make the dressing: Combine heaping tablespoon tahini with minced preserved lemon and crushed garlic. Add a drizzle of olive oil, 1 tsp date syrup or honey, and 1-2 Tbs water. Season with salt and pepper. Taste and add more sweetener and more water to get to desired flavor and consistency.
Make the cucumber salsa: Combine cucumber and avocado with a drizzle of olive oil and juice from half a lemon. Season with salt. Mix in half the pickled red onion slices (drained), half the cilantro, and the sesame seeds.
Sear the salmon: Heat some olive oil in a skillet on medium. Season the salmon with salt and pepper. Sear salmon, skin side down, for 6 minutes, then flip and cook for another 2-4 minutes depending on size of filet. Remove from heat.
Saute the chickpeas: While salmon is cooking, heat another drizzle of olive oil in a second skillet over medium heat. Cook garlic slices for about a minute, then stir in chickpeas. Cook for about 2 minutes, season with salt and pepper, and stir in tomatoes and remaining cilantro. Cook gently for another 5 minutes or until salmon is done.
Plate: Get out 2-4 bowls - recipe serves 2 hungry people with some leftovers. Pour some dressing on bottom of each bowl. Top with chickpea mixture, cucumber salsa, and seared salmon. Drizzle with additional dressing.