Yakitori-Style Salmon With Scallions and Zucchini

Yakitori-Style Salmon With Scallions and Zucchini

Yakitori is a Japanese dish in which boneless chicken pieces seasoned with salt (shio) and a soy basting sauce (tare) are threaded onto bamboo skewers and grilled over a charcoal fire. This weeknight meal borrows the flavors of traditional yakitori and applies it to salmon and vegetables. A salty-sweet sauce of soy sauce, sugar, vinegar, garlic and ginger doubles as a glaze and serving sauce. Tossed with greens, the leftover salmon and vegetables make a nice salad the next day, and the sauce keeps in the refrigerator for up to a week. Brush it onto chicken or pork chops before roasting, or use it to season your next clean-out-the-fridge fried rice.

Yield: 4 servings

¼ cup canola oil, plus more for greasing

1 tablespoon minced garlic (from about 3 cloves)

1 tablespoon minced ginger (from a 1-inch piece)

⅔ cup low-sodium soy sauce

⅓ cup turbinado sugar

2 tablespoons unseasoned rice vinegar

2 tablespoons cornstarch

1 pound small zucchini (about 3), trimmed and sliced ⅛-inch-thick

8 scallions, trimmed, halved lengthwise, if large, and cut into 2-inch pieces

Kosher salt and black pepper

2 pounds boneless, skinless salmon fillets, cut into 1-inch pieces

Lemon wedges, for serving

In a small saucepan, heat 1 tablespoon oil over medium-low. Add garlic and ginger and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 minute. Add ⅔ cup water, plus the soy sauce, sugar and vinegar, and bring to a boil over high heat.

Reduce heat to low and simmer, stirring to dissolve the sugar, 1 to 2 minutes. Mix cornstarch with 2 tablespoons water and whisk into sauce. Simmer until thickened, about 2 minutes. Reserve 1 cup of sauce for basting, and transfer remaining sauce to a small bowl, for serving.

Heat a grill, or a lightly greased cast-iron griddle or grill pan over medium. Season zucchini and scallions with salt and pepper and toss with 2 tablespoons oil. Thread onto wooden skewers that have been soaked in water or metal ones. Season salmon with salt and pepper and toss with remaining 1 tablespoon oil. Thread onto skewers.

Grill, basting with sauce and turning every few minutes, until salmon and vegetables are caramelized and cooked through, about 10 to 12 minutes for salmon and 12 to 15 minutes for vegetables. Serve with lemon wedges and reserved sauce for dipping.

TIP: I make yakitori on my Weber a lot and I use a trick from Steven Raichlens Barbeque Bible. Use two flat bricks (like pavers) on the grill with a 4 or 5 inch space between them. Lay skewers on them and they'll get direct heat but won't touch the grate and sticking problems will be greatly reduced.

I made this for dinner tonight, and I think I'm usually a good cook, but this was shockingly good - I felt like I was eating a restaurant quality meal. I did use brown sugar, and I cooked under the broiler (~12 min for the veg, ~8 for the salmon) because I didn't feel like getting the grill going and I don't have a grill pan or cast iron skillet. Made everything else as directed. The sauce in particular is amazing. Served with rice. Will definitely make again.

We made this a few days ago - this is delicious. We BBQ'd the salmon and veggies. The next time we make this, we will change:

-With 2 tbsp Cornstarch, the sauce was quite thick (hard to baste with). Will cut down to 1.5 tbsp

-We used Coho salmon, and BBQ time was 8 mins.

-The green onions on the edges of the skewers charred quite a bit (if you don't want this much charring, sandwich them in between the zucchini).

Try using two flat pavers on the grill with a space between them - about 4 or 5 inches. Lay skewers on pavers with the meat over the gap between them and exposed to direct heat. They'll cook nicely, the skewers won't turn to ash and the meat won't stick to the grate. I learned this from Steven Raichlens BBQ Bible.