Suya is a Nigerian spice I fell in love with many years back and till today, I'm that friend that always asks for Suya powder when any of my friends is visiting Nigeria. I love the how it combines, smoke, fire and earthy flavours and you know what, there are so many variations of the spice. Like, there is no one recipe that is perfect so, having the perfect suya also depends on your palette..... but I digress.
I thought suya would be great paired with an oil rich fish like salmon because it will cut through the fat with just a little bite. Thus was born the honey glazed suya salmon. I added the honey to give it some sweetness and I personally love the combination. I used a salmon fillet with the skin on and only cooked it skin side down so I don't overcook the fish.
The bak choi was no 'asian' inspiration. I just happen to love it and I had it at home. You can actually use any veg you like. It makes for a simple, healthy quick meal and if you must, you can have it with some sticky or wild rice.
Serves 4
4 individual salmon fillets (skin on)
Suya powder (if you haven't got suya, you can mix 1 tsp cayenne, 1 tsp paprika, 1 tsp all spice, 2 tsp finely ground peanuts, 1tsp ginger powder, 1 tsp garlic powder, 2 tsp burnt onion powder)
4 tbs honey
2 tbs dark roasted sesame oil and extra for cooking
1tsp lemon juice
Salt to taste
Put your salmon fillets into a square bowl and lay them flat, skin side down. Mix all the marinade ingredients together in a bowl and pour over the salmon fillets. Cover with cling film and let it sit in the fridge for about an hour.
To cook, heat a non stick skillet on high heat with sesame oil. Once the oil starts smoking, reduce the heat to medium and place the fillets in the pan skin side down.
Once the fish starts to turn opaque, pour one tablespoon of water into the pan and quickly cover the pan so the top of the fillet is cooked with the steam for about one minute.
Take of the lid of the pan and pour in the marinade thats left. Allow it to reduce slightly then spoon over the fish and serve with your choice of sides.