Jubilee Salmon

Asparagus and salmon go so well together that the Queen chose this combination for a dish to be served at the banquet to celebrate her Silver Jubilee; it's a celebration of Scotland and England, two of the countries over which she reigns. Most British asparagus is grown in England, while salmon is caught mostly in Scottish waters. Although wild salmon is now not as abundant as it was previously, farmed salmon is usually readily available, even if it's never quite the same as the wild fish, the quality is generally quite good. If you do come across wild salmon, which is available in May, it only needs poaching, not much more.

Ingredients:
4 x 175g salmon steaks, trimmed and pin-boned
25g unsalted butter
2 shallots, peeled and finely diced
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to season
12 asparagus spears, trimmed
150ml white wine
150ml fish stock
25g clarified butter
4 plum tomatoes, seeded and diced

For the Herb Hollandaise
150g clarified butter or ghee
3 egg yolks, lightly beaten
5ml white wine vinegar
10ml lightly chopped fresh tarragon
10ml snipped chives

Method:

Preheat the oven to 180C.

Lay the salmon steaks skin-side down on the work surface. Make an incision through to the skin from back to belly, taking care not to cut through the skin. Open up the steaks so that the skin is folded in the middle at the back - like a book. You should now have a 'heart shape' fish steak.

Grease an oven proof baking dish with butter and sprinkle in the finely diced shallots. Add the salmon steaks, skin side down, and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Arrange the asparagus spears around them and pour in the wine and stock. cover the baking dish with foil and bake in the prepared oven for 10 minutes only. Do not be tempted to cook the fish for longer than this; it needs no more cooking.

While the salmon is in the oven, prepare the topping for the fish. Melt 25g clarified butter into a small pan, add the diced tomatoes, season and warm through. Do not stir.

when the salmon has finished its 10 minutes in the oven, remove from the oven and transfer the salmon steaks carefully to individual warmed plates and keep them warm. Take out the asparagus spears and trim off the tips; chop the remainder of the spears finely. Keep both the tips and dice warm.

In a small pan, reduce the salmon cooking liquor from the baking dish to about a third of it's original volume.

To make the Hollandaise, in a glass bowl over a pan of boiling water, making sure the bowl does not touch the water - the bowl should only be in contact with the steam - whisk the egg yolks and vinegar to a frothy consistency. Be very careful not to overcook. If necessary, remove from the heat so the eggs do not scramble with overheating. Whisking continuously, take off the heat and slowly drizzle in the clarified butter. If the sauce cracks or starts to curdle, add about a teaspoon of cold water to bring it back. To complete the sauce, add the reduced cooking liquor, seasoning, the chopped herbs and diced asparagus and blend through the sauce.

To serve, spoon the sauce over the fish steaks and top the fish with a little of the tomato dice. Garnish each steak with asparagus tips and serve immediately.