Salmon Cubes with Tomatoes and Rice

I found this dish on All Recipes, and it was super easy to make. And even better: super yummy! It's a great way to prepare fish if (like John) you aren't super into plain fish.

The fresh salmon fillets the store had were really big, and I don't like to save fish leftovers, so I almost bought just one. I'm so glad I upped it to two - we both enjoyed two plates of this and ate until it was gone!

The Ingredients:

• 1 cup uncooked long grain white rice
• 2 cups of chicken stock or water for cooking rice
• 2 1/2 tablespoons olive oil
• 2 salmon fillets
• salt and pepper to taste
• 1/4 teaspoon paprika to taste
• 2 fresh tomatoes, diced
• 1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
• 1 teaspoon lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh parsley
• 1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese
• 2 tablespoons butter
• hot sauce
• 1/2 teaspoon dried dill weed (I didn't have any, so left it out)
• For a quick side dish: add a bunch of asparagus and tablespoon of butter.

The Steps:

1. Add rice and water to rice cooker. Or, if you don't have one, bring the rice and water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Reduce heat to low, cover, and cook 20 minutes.
2. Heat the olive oil in a pan over medium heat. 
3. Season the salmon with salt, pepper, dill, and paprika, and cook in the hot oil 1 to 2 minutes on each side, until tender enough to break apart. 
4. Break salmon into cubes with a spatula. 
5. Mix in the tomatoes and lemon juice. Continue cooking until salmon is easily flaked with a fork.
6. Mix the parsley, Parmesan cheese, butter, and hot pepper sauce into the skillet, and continue cooking 1 to 2 minutes, until well mixed. 
7. Serve over the cooked rice.
8. For a quick side dish, sauté the asparagus in a tablespoon of butter.

The Photos:

Salmon is certainly not cheap, but a nice treat once in a while! (Especially when it's on sale.)

I like to cook my rice in chicken stock instead of water to add more flavor. I love taking the shortcut of my rice cooker: just add the rice and liquid (1:2 ratio) and hit start!

Heat olive oil and garlic in a pan. 

Add salt, pepper, dill, and paprika to the top of the fillets. (I realized when I got home that I was out of dill, so I had to leave it out.)

Add the fillets to the pan.

I removed the skin from the salmon. I think you can keep it on and eat it if you want to, but that just doesn't appeal to me. 

After cooking the salmon for a couple minutes on both sides, use a spatula to break it into pieces. 

Mix in the tomatoes, garlic, and lemon juice. Continue cooking until salmon is easily flaked with a fork.

Add the parsley, Parmesan cheese, butter, and hot pepper sauce into the skillet. Continue cooking a couple minutes, until well mixed. 

(While the salmon was cooking, I sauteed some asparagus in butter for a side dish. No special recipe, just a tablespoon of butter and some fresh asparagus.)

Serve the salmon over the bed of rice. Enjoy!