This super aromatic Chinese-style Spiced Poached Salmon is quick to prepare and goes perfectly with Asian veggies and rice
Poached fish doesn’t have to be boring!
Dinner time! I made poached fish!!! Yelling this, probably won’t get my family running to the dinner table, including the hubby, Tomasi. However, if I yelled out ‘Poached eggs for breakfast!’ they would come running. This is probably because poached eggs are in a league of their own. Think Egg Benedict, yeah, few people would turn them down.
Why is it that poached fish doesn’t bring the same excitement to the table? Maybe it’s because poached fish has a reputation for being dry and flavourless. A boring piece of fish at the table!
Well, that’s all about to change thanks to this delicious Chinese-inspired Poached Salmon! This salmon and its poaching broth is anything but boring. It’s big on Asian flavours with a spiced broth comprising soy sauce, orange rind, shaoxing wine, ginger, fennel, star anise and cinnamon.
Thanks to the ultra-gentle poaching, the salmon is aromatic and just melts in the mouth. I’ve finally convinced my fussy family that poached fish is worth running to the table for! I had a hard time convincing Tomasi I poached the salmon because he couldn’t believe how tender and tasty it was.
Making this dish is a cinch, which makes it perfect for a healthy midweek meal. The spiced broth is a ‘master stock’, which means we can reuse it over and over many times. The more we use the broth, the more flavour and depth it will have.
For more amazing poached recipes, check out:
Meet the Master Stock
This poaching broth requires significant amounts of soy sauce and Shaoxing wine. Although these ingredients are relatively cheap, it’ll probably make you think twice because half of those bottles have gone into the broth. That’s what I was thinking when I first made this dish! But then I discovered this broth lasts several years when frozen and can be reused when needed!
Yes, that’s right! It’s hard to believe, it’s almost magical. Say hello to Master Stock! A stock which originated from China. I’ve read that a Chinese restaurant kept the oldest Master Stock for 100 years! Wow, that is amazing and I can only imagine how intense and flavourful that stock must’ve been.
The stock develops deep flavours from the previous vegetables or protein it’s cooked with. So the longer you keep the broth and the more you cook with it, the more complex it becomes.
How to store Master Stock – Leave the broth to cool completely. Place a fine-mesh sieve over a large bowl and strain the broth to remove the solids. You may need to do this twice to remove all the particles from the broth. Pour the broth into a large freeze-safe container and store it in the freezer.
To use, defrost the frozen broth at room temperature for a few hours or leave to defrost in the fridge for a few days.
Having old Master stock in the fridge makes preparing this dish even easier because it’s all done for us. There’s no need to mix the ingredients, as all we need to do is pour the old broth into a saucepan and heat it up. This broth is lovely for poaching firm fish, seafood, chicken, tofu and veggies.
Ingredients for Poached Salmon in Chinese spiced stock
Salmon fillets – I used skinless and boneless salmon fish fillets which weighed approximately 150-170gm (5.3-6oz) each. Good fishmongers are happy to remove the skin and bones from your fillets.
Shaoxing cooking wine is a Chinese cooking wine, sometimes known as Shao Xing or Shao Hsing. It comprises water, rice, wheat, salt and alcohol. Bottles of Shaoxing wine are cheap to buy from Asian specialty stores and some supermarkets stock them too. Mirin or dry sherry are good substitutes for Shaoxing wine.
Light soy sauce or regular soy sauce but avoid the dark or sweet soy sauce varieties, as these are not interchangeable.
Star anise is a beautiful looking spice, shaped like a flower. It’s quite strong with liquorice flavour. You would usually find star anise stocked in the herbs and spice section of the supermarket.
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How to make Poached Salmon in Chinese spiced stock
Step-by-step guide with photos
Place all the poaching broth ingredients in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.
Place the salmon fillets into the saucepan, making sure most of the broth covers the salmon. Cover and poach on low heat for 7 minutes for fillets that weigh 150gm (5.3oz) or a few minutes longer for larger fillets. Don’t overcook the salmon as they’ll dry out and become a little tough.
Remove the salmon from the broth using a large, flat spatula. Take care not to break the fillets because they’re very tender. Serve immediately with rice and vegetables.
Leftovers – The broth is a ‘Master stock’, so don’t throw it away, as it can be reused many times over again. Once the broth has cooled down completely, strain it through a fine-mesh sieve twice. Discard the solids and pour the broth into a freezer-safe container and store it in the freezer. Store any remaining salmon in an air-tight container and place in fridge for up to 2 days.
A Third-Party Application calculated the calories and nutritional information. Please use this as an approximate guide only.
Cooking measurements are in Australian standard spoon and cup measurements.
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Cheers (I’ll drink to that) – Cat Tre
Watch my Chinese Salt and Pepper Fish Video
Poached Salmon in Chinese Spiced Broth
Ingredients
- 4 salmon fillets (approx. 150-200g/5.3-7oz each fillet) (NOTE 1)
Poaching broth
- 1½ cup water
- 1½ cup Shaoxing wine (NOTE 2)
- 1 cup light soy sauce (NOTE 3)
- 3 large strips of orange rind
- 3 star anise (NOTE 4)
- 2 cinnamon stick
- 1½ tsp fennel seeds
- 40 gm ginger (thinly sliced)
- ⅓ cup brown sugar (firmly packed)
- 2 tsp chicken powder (or chicken stock powder)
Instructions
- Place all the poaching broth ingredients in a medium-sized saucepan over medium heat. Bring it to a boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer uncovered for 10 minutes.
- Place the salmon fillets into the saucepan, making sure most of the broth covers the salmon. Cover and poach on low heat for 7 minutes for fillets that weigh 150gm (5.3oz) or a few minutes longer for larger fillets. Don't overcook the salmon as they'll dry out and become a little tough.
- Remove the salmon from the broth using a large, flat spatula. Take care not to break the fillets because they're very tender. Serve immediately with rice and vegetables.
