Pan-Fried Salmon Steaks

My kids and I love the taste of salmon...even plain with just the barest of seasonings - salt and pepper. And since wild Alaskan salmon is rich in omega-3 fatty acids (a healthy fat), this also cooks on the pan with very little oil to start with, as it also releases its own oil as it cooks, and comes out with crispy crust, almost like it was deep-fried, especially at the belly part. You can pretty much say "na-prito sa sariling mantika" (fried in its own oil). When summer is here, these are the most craved for dishes for me, and would be more so when I start producing my own tomatoes freshly picked from my garden. (That reminds me, this is also a good time to make salted eggs.)

Photo depicts how we Filipinos typically enjoy our fried fish -- with slices of tomatoes, green onions (or chives, as how I used here), and onions (I used Vidalia just for the taste of it), with a drizzle of patis (fish sauce) and some lemon juice, enjoyed with plain (or fried) rice. Pinoy na Pinoy! A lot of our typical Filipino meals are not at all gourmet, but if you look at food mags of today (like bon appetit), they are looking more and more like the Filipino style of enjoying food. Maybe because of the growing concern about going back to the basics of food (a rebellion against industrialization of food)...oh well...I am babbling here, an after effect of reading the book "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan. Well, let's get on with how I prepare my salmon steaks -- nothing fancy gourmet-y. Just plain home cooking, Pinoy style.

Ingredients:
1 tbsp oil
salmon steaks
salt and pepper to taste

For tomato dip/salsa (whatever you call it!)
3 medium tomatoes, diced
onion greens, snipped
thin slices of vidalia onions to taste
1-2 tbsp fish sauce (or anchovy paste)
a drizzle of lemon juice (best to use calamansi if available)
(optional) fresh baby spinach

Instructions:
Sprinkle salmon steaks with salt and pepper to taste. Heat up your pan on medium low (#4) for 5 minutes. (Meanwhile, you can start preparing the tomato dip/salsa.) Add oil and distribute evenly; wait 1-2 minutes. Place the salmon steaks on the pan and let cook one side for 2 minutes. Flip over, cover loosely, lower the heat to #2 and let cook for another 4 minutes or until salmon is done (test with fork; if fish easily flakes off, it is done).

Enjoy with prepped tomato dip/salsa and plain or fried rice.