Honey Harissa Salmon

I absolutely love this simple and flavourful dish. This is a great example of using the whole vegetable, the carrot tops are often discarded and this is a fun way to use them up. Zhoug is a spicy and flavourful Middle Eastern condiment made from a blend of fresh herbs, chili peppers, garlic, and spices, often used to add heat and depth to dishes. It pairs perfectly with the warm harissa and sweet honey.

Instructions

1. 1

   Preheat the oven to 425, in a bowl combine the harissa, honey, olive oil, lemon juice and sea salt and set aside.

2. 2

   Trim and halve the washed carrots, arrange on a baking sheet, use 1-2 tbsp of the harissa honey paste and massage them into the carrots until fully coated. Arrange the salmon around the carrots on the tray and coat each piece of salmon with a spoonful of harissa paste. Bake in the oven for 20-25 minutes or until the carrots are tender and the salmon is cooked through.

3. 3

   To make the zhoug: in a blender add the carrot tops, cilantro, parsley, jalapeno, ¼ cup olive oil, baharat mix, ½ tbsp sea salt and apple cider vinegar and blend until smooth. Taste and adjust seasoning if necessary.

4. 4

   Serve the carrots and salmon with a generous drizzle of the zhoug. This meal would go well with couscous or a big salad.

5. 5

   Notes: *Baharat spice blend is a fragrant Middle Eastern seasoning consisting of a mix of warm spices like cinnamon, cloves, cumin, coriander and paprika. If you can’t find this locally you can substitute with ½ tbsp cumin, ¼ Tbsp coriander and ¼ Tbsp paprika Store any leftover zhoug in the fridge for up to 5 days. This sauce works well as a herby replacement to hot sauce.