Cold Broiled Salmon with Lemon Garlic Oil

Salmon, simply roasted and served slightly chilled, is one of my absolute favorite things to eat. It's a perfect easy lunch, but it's even better as a dish to serve when entertaining. It's made in advance (the number one rule of easy dinner parties) and tastes even better a few hours after cooking (the number one rule of make ahead recipes).

To make this dish, you start with a great piece or two of salmon (I used a couple large fillets of wild coho salmon) for this today, but I've also made it using an entire side of salmon when feeding a bigger crowd. Pat the salmon very dry on both sides, then season generously with salt, freshly cracked pepper, and what will feel like too much olive oil. Tuck thinly sliced lemon rounds, garlic slices, and a big pinch of chile flakes all around the salmon and broil.

Remove the pan from the oven, transfer the salmon to a serving platter, then return the pan with the lemon slices, garlic, and oil to the broiler for a few more minutes until the lemons are slightly charred and the oil is super fragrant.

Then you pour this oil all over the salmon. Add a few of the prettiest charred lemon slices to the platter. Cover it all loosely and refrigerate for at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

The resting time will make the salmon firm up and absorb a bit of that incredible fragrant oil. Serve this right from the fridge along with sides of your choice (Roasted asparagus? A big colorful salad? A large bowl of herbed quinoa? Up to you!)

Cold Broiled Salmon with Lemon Garlic Oil

Serves 4 - 8

Ingredients
2-4 pounds wild salmon (in fillets or a whole side)
Kosher salt
Black pepper
1/2 - 1 cup extra virgin olive oil (1/4 cup per pound of salmon)
3 lemons, thinly sliced + additional lemon wedges, for serving
5 large garlic cloves, sliced into 1/4" thick slices 
1/4 teaspoon red chile flakes

Directions
Preheat oven broiler.

Pat salmon very dry. Place skin-side down in a large baking dish or sheet pan if using a whole side. Season generously witth kosher salt and black pepper. Pour oil over and around the fish. Scatter lemon slices, garlic, and chile flakes around and on top of fish. Squeeze the juice out of the end pieces of the lemons and throw those in the pan, too.

Broil 5 - 10 minutes on the highest rack directly under the broiler. (Time will vary based on your desired level of doneness and thickness of the fish.)

Remove from oven (leave broiler on). Transfer only the salmon to a serving platter. Return the pan with the lemon, oil, garlic and chile flakes to the broiler and let cook a few more minutes until lemons are charred.

Pour the oil and charred lemons over the salmon. Cover loosely and refrigerate at least 4 hours and up to overnight.

Serve chilled.