International dishesGrilled DishesEurope and North America5 minutes prep, 25 minutes baking
Baked salmon with mozzarella takes only about 30 minutes. The difficulty is judging when it is done: salmon held too long in the oven dries out and loses both its softness and the pink blush inside.
The cheese layer has to melt evenly without burning. A first bake of 5 to 7 minutes at 180 degrees C brings the colour up, and only then do 70g of cheese go over the surface for another 10 minutes.
This batch weighs about 550g, at roughly 210 calories per 100g.
Method
Rinse 400g of salmon with a little salt, drain it, then cut the fillet into 4 pieces even in both size and weight.
Melt 2 teaspoons of unsalted butter and brush it over the surface of the fish. Sprinkle on 1 teaspoon of salt and 1 teaspoon of ground pepper and rub it in lightly.
Cut the lemon in half, squeeze the juice of one half over the fish and slice the other half thinly to lay around the fish while it bakes.
Heat the oven to 180 degrees C for 5 minutes, put the fish in and bake for 5 to 7 minutes.
Once the fish changes colour, scatter 70g of mozzarella cheese over the surface and bake another 10 minutes until the fish is cooked and the cheese has melted.
Tips
Cutting the fillet into 4 pieces even in both size and weight is what makes them cook at the same rate.
For softer, less cooked fish, the final bake can be cut short.
The fish is right when a faint pink blush remains inside rather than a dry, stringy centre.
Lemon slices laid around the fish while it bakes add scent and take off any fishy edge.
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