My Balik Salmon Meal

A few evenings ago, I sat down to a  thrillingly indulgent home prepared meal. I use the word prepared very lightly, as in reality it took no more than cutting salmon fillet and spooning salmon caviar. But I say, who cares? You don't have to go through some grand list of processes in the kitchen to eat well. Sometimes, you just let the quality of your ingredients speak for themselves.













I went to Caviar House and Prunier on Piccadilly and picked up some Balik tartar (a mixture of salmon and quark these), a Sjomga Orange salmon fillet and a jar of Balik "pearls"which is the caviar of Keta salmon.

I was inspired to take a few Balik products home after having visited the Caviar House to eat in their seafood bar. Whilst there I had a salmon tasting plate which included all the above as well as the Sjomga Tradition, Sjomga Nori and Gravaldlax amongst others. All was served with brown toast, cream cheese, unsalted butter and Balik dill mustard. Everything I tried could be fairly described as delicious.

The Sjomga Orange salmon fillet was wonderfully sweet with a strong taste of honey and orange as well as maintaining the oily richness of the salmon which is of the very highest quality. As for the tartar, that too was nicely balanced with the use of quark ensuring that it didn't become too rich.

My personal favourite though are the Balik pearls which are a brilliant bright, rich orange colour and feel beautifully delicate in the mouth. Like other caviar, they are light salted in order to preserve them but Balik and Caviar House and Prunier are far too excellent producers to allow their produce to become overly saline. Apparently, the correct technique with caviar is to let the fragile bubbles sit in the mouth before bursting them by squeezing them in between your tongue and the top of your mouth. They are a rich treat to be savoured slowly.













I also added some peat-smoked scallops from the Hebridean Smokehouse which were both intensely smoky and pleasantly sweet. Wine was Guy Charbaut Champagne. Champagne and similar sparkling wines are always a good match for this type of food. Otherwise, a smooth high-quality vodka is also good.

There's no denying that these products are a treat, probably to be enjoyed infrequently, but that is part of their appeal. They feel special and luxuriant and the perfect way to treat yourself on a special, or not so special (if you just need a bit of luxury) occasion. I'd certainly recommend it- some people go for massages or beauty therapies; why not go for this kind of indulgence instead?

Caviar House and Prunier- https://www.caviarhouse-prunier.com/united-kingdom/en/index__25_83-1
Hebridean Smokehouse- http://www.hebrideansmokehouse.com/pages/1/home
Guy Charbaut Champagne- http://www.champagne-guy-charbaut.com/

GastroTom

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