Blackened Salmon w/ Wild Rice & Cajun Alfredo

This recipe is a lot of fun to make. Once the heavy prep is out of the way, this dish can be made in under 10 minutes. In this blog you'll find the steps to make everything from scratch, but you'll also find shortcuts (in parenthesis) along the way to help keep everything simple.INGREDIENTS

Wild Rice
1/2 lb. Chilean Salmon Fillet
6 Each (26/30) Shrimp
1 Roma Tomato, diced
1 Bunch Green Onions, chopped

For The Alfredo
2 Tbsp. Butter
1 Tbsp. Garlic, minced
1 Tbsp. Salt
1/2 Tbsp. White Pepper
1/2 tsp. Nutmeg
2 C. Heavy Cream
1/2 C. Parmesan Cheese
1 Tbsp. Blackening Seasoning

FOR THE RICE (Skip This Step? Buy an "Uncle Ben's" boxed rice.)
Start by making the rice because it can take as much as 25 minutes. Rice cookers are fine, but I find that they always burn the bottom portion of my rice. I suggest putting your favorite kind of rice into a small pan with about double the amount of water, 2 Tbsp. of butter, and your favorite herbs and spices. Cover and simmer on medium heat for 20-30 minutes while you do the rest of your prep.

FOR THE ALFREDO (Skip This Step? Buy Alfredo and add blackening seasoning to it.)
In a stock pot over medium high heat, combine your butter, garlic, salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Once the garlic has browned slightly add your heavy cream and bring to a simmer for 7 minutes. Add your parmesan cheese and whisk to prevent the cheese from clumping. The sauce will thicken as the cheese melts. Finish with blackening seasoning.


For this dish, I was able to use one of my favorite kitchen gadgets. I have a Flat-Top made out of Solid Marble. Essentially it's a slab of rock that heats up to 450 degrees. I only get to use it about twice a year, so I was excited that this recipe could utilize my Marble Flat-Top. You can use a fry pan or a saute pan just as easily.


Heat your pan over medium high heat. Season the fish with salt, pepper, and blackening seasoning.


Sear one side of the fish while you season the other side. When the fish has cooked halfway through (about 3-4 minutes) flip it over and sear the other side.


At this point you can either add the shrimp to the same pan or heat a second pan. If you're using the same pan, then oil from the salmon will flavor your shrimp

*I use 26/30 shrimp because they're pretty small. "26/30" means that there are an average of 26-30 shrimp in a pound. "16/20" shrimp are larger and more commonly used in shrimp cocktails. These are the two most commonly found sizes in super-markets. There are also "41/50" shrimp and "90/110" shrimp also known as "popcorn" shrimp.

Serve the salmon over a bed of rice alongside the shrimp. Circle the rice with the cajun alfredo and top it all with diced tomatoes and green onions.