Crème Fraîche Baked Salmon

In my opinion any food that has creme fraiche in it is delicious, even fish. I have never been one to embrace the eating of aquatic animals, sure I like sushi, salmon soup with heavy cream and rye bread, fish and chips, rye bread and salmon cured in salt, but I still never could say that yes, I like to eat fish.

There is something about the vast depths of the sea that leaves me uneasy; especially the thought of eating the animals with scales and fins living there. Even the strong salty odour that emanates from the deep waters gives me the chills sometimes.

Maybe it has something to do with the fact that sea to me means the Barents Sea which is almost black, cold and in my memories always raging, not for example the Mediterranean with the turquoise warm waters. The way I associate something like the Barents Sea with a nice cosy home cooked meal containing fish might be one of the reasons for my aversion of the ectothermic scale covered creatures.

I still eat fish though, especially salmon, although I can taste the salty icy waters with every bite I swallow.

On a more serious and less dramatic note I do not know why fish does not taste all that good to me, although salmon is a nice exception to the rule and I prefer eating it whenever we eat fish.

This recipe is a childhood favourite and a sure thing for me to make, since I know that I love eating it - every time.

Creme fraiche baked salmon recipe

The creme fraiche in this recipe can be substituted with any kind of cream cheese and smetana. For a more interesting twist you can add herbs, sautéed mushrooms and onions or parmesan to the creme fraiche. Remember that wild salmon needs a lot less salt than farmed salmon.

I always take the skin off the salmon when baking it because it is easier to eat that way, but you could just place the salmon skin side down and add the lemon and spices along with the creme fraiche on top of it right away.

Serves 4 (or two hungry persons) and takes approximately 30 minutes to make. Very easy to make.

- approximately one pound/500 grams of salmon fillet

-salt and black pepper according to taste

- the juice of one lemon, reduce the amount to half a lemon if you don’t want a strong lemony taste

- 200 grams/ one cup of creme fraiche

Preheat an oven to 400 F or 200 C.

Rinse and dry the salmon fillet.

Take a baking dish and place the salmon in it. Pour half of the lemon juice on top of it and sprinkle the salt on it along with the black pepper.

Turn the salmon skin side up and place into the oven. Bake for 7-10 minutes. Take it out of the oven and roll the skin off.

Pour the rest of the lemon juice on the salmon and sprinkle some salt and black pepper on it. Place the creme fraiche on top of the salmon evenly.

Bake the salmon for another 20-30 minutes, or until it is done. Some people like their salmon to be dryish and some prefer a moister salmon; the baking time should be therefore adjusted according to individual preference.

I like to eat this with some regular mashed potatoes that have some shredded basil leaves added to the mix.  A dry white wine is always a good option with this dish.

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