June 17, 2015

Chipotle Rubbed Salmon Tacos

In the early days of getting to know my slow cooker, I understood it to be the fix-it-& forget-it gadget which favors meat based all day cooking recipes. But Meg and I discovered that it can accomplish so much more.

As mompreneurs, our schedules are never the same two days in a row leading us to fitting our slow cookers into our lifestyles. We appreciate both the gone all day solution to dinner time such as our beer and balsamic braised pork trottole and the early afternoon preparation recipes such as curried lentil tortilla, but what happens on those days when we work from home and have a window around 4pm when we return from school pick up?

This late afternoon zone provides the perfect opportunity for cooking light, seafood, fish and vegetarian recipes, which require a much shorter cooking time.

The second in our trio of recipes adapted from the Midwest Palliative & Hospice Care Center cookbook, was submitted by Maria McCabe.

I chose thicker fillets of salmon, lined the bottom of my slow cooker with a sliced lime and stacked the fillets on top. The fillets had a supple, creamy texture and flaked perfectly. If you prefer not to prepare your own salsa, a store bought fresh mango salsa is a great alternative.

Prep Time: 20 minutes

Cooking Time: 2 hours HIGH or 3-4 LOW

Servings: 6 (makes 16 small tortilla)

Ingredients

1 1/2 lb salmon fillet

1 tbsp chipotle powder

1 tsp salt

1 tbsp orange zest, finely grated

1 tbsp light brown sugar

2 tbsp olive oil

1 lime, sliced

8 corn tortilla

1 large ripe avocado, mashed

1 cup cabbage or brussel sprouts, finely shredded

lime-mayo dressing

1 tbsp lime juice

1/4 cup mayonnaise or sour cream

apple – cucumber salsa

1 cup / 1 granny smith apple, peeled, small dice

1 cup / 1/2 cup cucumber, peeled, seeded, small dice

1/2 cup red onion, small dice

1/2 cup red bell pepper, small dice

2 tbsp lime juice or white wine vinegar

1 tsp sugar

salt & black pepper

In a small bowl or cup, mix the chipotle powder, salt, orange zest, sugar and olive oil. Rub onto the salmon pieces.

Lay the slices of lime in the bottom of your slow cooker and place the rubbed salmon on top of it. Cover and cook on HIGH for 2 hours.

* if you have a thinner fillet of salmon, reduce the cooking time by 30 minutes to ensure it doesn’t overcook.

Prepare the salsa and lime mayo dressing.

When the salmon is cooked, flake it in the slow cooker and lay it on warmed corn tortilla spread with the mashed avocado. Top the salmon with the shredded cabbage and a drizzle of the lime mayo dressing.