Delia’s Roasted Salmon Fillets with Crusted Basil Pesto Topping

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Soft, beautifully seasoned and perfectly cooked salmon fillets topped with a crunchy, cheesy basil pesto topping. Quick to throw together and easy to prepare ahead of time, all this wonderful dish needs alongside is some salad or vegetables (or both) and perhaps some new potatoes as well. Here I chose some broccoli and ratatouille giving the whole dish a wonderful feel of the Mediterranean. Although it is best served alfresco, you can genuinely make this dish all year round.

Where is this recipe from?

I first had this dish a few weeks ago at my friend Mandy’s house. She made it for a friends reunion, the sun came out and we had a lovely lunch on the terrace. It was followed by a really delicious Poached Apricot and Ricotta dessert.

This is a recipe from the wonderful Delia Smith. I’m not sure if it is in a cookery book, but it can be found on line here.

How to make Delia’s Roasted Salmon Fillets with Crusted Basil Pesto Topping

Please see the printable Recipe Card below for the exact, yet condensed, quantities and instructions.

The recipe below is for 2 people but it is a fabulous recipe to scale up or down. It works really well for entertaining because it can all be prepared ahead of time and then just popped in the oven 10 minutes before you want to eat.

Collect all the ingredients together:

• salmon fillets, skinned. Around 130g – 175g each, or your chosen size.
• lemon juice. You could also use lime juice.
• pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper. Go easy with the salt because the pesto will be seasoned and the cheese also adds a salty kick.
• basil pesto, either shop bought or home made. I like a basil pesto but a red pepper or wild garlic pesto would also work very well indeed. Homemade or supermarket fresh pesto, as opposed to bottled pesto, works much better for this recipe
• panko breadcrumbs, divided. Or you could make your own.
• finely grated Pecorino or parmesan cheese. Delia’s original recipe uses Pecorino cheese but I had parmesan in the fridge, when I made this, which worked wonderfully.)

How to make this wonderful salmon dish:

1. Preheat oven to 230°C/450°F/Gas 8 (fan 210°C). The salmon is cooked quickly in a very high heat; this ensures it keeps moist and the topping is nice and crunchy.
2. Check for bones: check that there are no remaining bones in the salmon fillet by touching the flesh gently with your hands. If you feel any bones, remove them with tweezers.
3. Remove the skin from the salmon. See below for details on how to do this.
4. Lightly oil a baking tray and place the salmon fillets in the centre, skinned side down.
5. Season: squeeze over the lemon juice and lightly season with salt and pepper.
6. Topping: stir the pot of pesto well and then measure 2 tablespoons into a mixing bowl. Add 2 teaspoons breadcrumbs, stir to mix and then spread equally over the top of each fillet. NB It is important to give the pesto a good stir, as it can separate a little if left to stand.
7. Next, mix ½ tablespoon of finely grated pecorino or parmesan cheese with the remaining 4 teaspoons breadcrumbs and sprinkle this equally over the pesto topped salmon.
8. Press the breadcrumbs down gently with the back of spoon to secure it to the pesto. Sprinkle with the remaining grated cheese.
9. Bake: in the centre of a preheated oven for 8 – 10 minutes, depending on size and how you like your salmon cooked. I like my salmon cooked through, although technically it should be served a little softer in the centre. These fillets weighed 140g each (with skin) and I cooked them for 10 minutes. Use this as a guide for how long to cook yours.
10. Serve with vegetables, (I served some broccoli and ratatouille) or a salad on the side, or both. Perhaps some new potatoes as well.

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How to remove the skin from a fillet of salmon:

• place the salmon, top side down on a chopping board.
• using a very sharp knife, make a small incision (around 2.5cms/1 inch long) between the skin and the salmon flesh.
• turn the fish over so it is skin side down.
• hold on to the skin with one hand and take the knife with the other.
• continue the incision, sliding the knife between the skin and the flesh whilst firmly holding the skin to create some tension and making it easier to cut.
• cut as close to the skin as possible and always cut away from your body.

Made this recipe?

If you make this recipe, do please tag me on instagram @daffodil_kitchen. You could also leave a comment in the box directly below the recipe.