Salmon steak, cauliflower cream and watercress pesto

Japanese chef Yumika Tokita revisits the classic salmon and cauliflower dish with a marinade based on soy sauce and mirin.

This recipe by Yumika Tokita,chef at the Saxifrage restaurant in Lyon ,is taken from the 2024 edition ofBook 109: The new blood of French gastronomy. Discover the ingredients and preparation steps to make it a breeze.

Serves 4
Preparation time: 15 min
Cooking time : 35 min
Resting time: 45 min

Ingredients for salmon steak with cauliflower cream

4 salmon steaks (approx. 120 g per person)
1 cauliflower
Almond milk
Rice vinegar
Mirin
Sesame oil
Soy sauce
Watercress
Olive oil
Salt and pepper

Steps for thesalmon steak with cauliflower cream

Prepare the cauliflower cream: remove the cauliflower heads and pre-cook the rest of the cauliflower for 20 min, steaming if possible. Then continue cooking for 10 min, adding the almond milk. Blend and add more almond milk to achieve the desired texture. The mixture should be creamy. Add salt to taste as required.
Prepare the marinated cauliflower: make the marinade with rice vinegar and mirin in equal quantities, and a little salt. Bring the mixture to the boil, then stop cooking.
Cook the cauliflower heads in boiling water for 1-2 min. Drain and immediately plunge into very cold water to stop the cooking process, so that the cauliflower remains crunchy. Slice very thinly with a mandolin. Add the marinade, a drizzle of sesame oil and marinate for 15 minutes.
Prepare the salmon steaks: marinate for 30 min in a mixture of soy sauce (6 cl) and mirin (4 cl), then drain. Pan-fry the salmon steaks on both sides, quickly enough to keep them melting. Turn off the heat and cover the pavés with aluminum foil, so that they continue to stew for a while.
Prepare the watercress pesto: cook the watercress in boiling water for 30 seconds. Drain and plunge into very cold water to stop the cooking process. Blend the watercress with olive oil.
Arrange the salmon and cauliflower cream on a plate. Pour over the watercress pesto and add the pickled cauliflower for a crunchy, acidic finish. Season to taste.