Thursday...it's almost the weekend, those enticing reservations at the new hip spot are looming just around the corner but it's a week night and that means I try to cook at home. On the weekends I love to indulge, try new things, or go out for one of my classic favorites that I've been craving all week. But, alas, it is a Thursday and I've got a fridge full of yummy ingredients calling my name...

On the menu: salmon marinated in a little concoction of soy sauce, brown sugar, a dash of grainy mustard and chopped scallions. The scallions add a fresh kick but are easy to forgo if you don't have them on hand. With the salmon I'll steam a bunch of haricot vert (very similar to green beans). Lastly I'll make a simple faux fried rice to accompany my asian inspired meal with already cooked brown rice, kale, and some chopped baby pea sprouts.

How To:

The Main

Salmon: Mix a liberal pour of soy sauce with a spoon full of brown sugar (I had the brown sugar/splenda mix in my pantry), a spoon full of grainy brown mustard, and a palm full of chopped scallions. Whisk up in a bowl. Put your salmon in a pyrex baking dish or on a cookie sheet and pour the soy sauce mixture over the top. Make sure all of the salmon is covered and let it sit for about 10 minutes. Then put it on the top rack in the oven at 400-425 for 15-20 minutes depending on the size of the fish. I often take mine out, cut a little piece and judge by the looks of the inside whether or not its done.

Whisking the soy sauce mixture

Marinated the Salmon

Cooked Salmon

The Sides

Haricot Vert: Steaming veggies is so easy and of course healthy because you aren't adding anything but water. Put the haricot vert (sub green beans or any green veggie for that matter) in a pan and fill it halfway above the veggies with water. Allow it to come to a boil then let it cook for a few more minutes on a low heat. Drain and serve, simple as that. 

Faux Fried Rice: I always have issues cooking brown rice perfectly and it's fairly time consuming so instead I opt for Trader Joe's organic already cooked brown rice in the freezer section. You simply cut three holes in the top of the bag, and put it in the microwave for 3 minutes. Voila! Perfect brown rice, serves 2-3 people. While the brown rice was steaming away I grabbed a handful of pre-chopped and cleaned kale and put it in a hot pan with a little bit of olive oil and a dash of water for steam. Takes just a few minutes to cook down just like spinach. Once the rice was done I added it to the kale, with a few sprinkles of soy sauce to flavor and a bunch of fresh baby pea sprouts cut into bite size pieces for some crunchy texture in the rice. 

Steamed Kale

Finished product!

The meal took all of 30 minutes, prep and cook time included. It was tasty and satisfying what with all of the asian flavors and textures, but I'm feeling delightfully healthy to take on the weekend indulgences! Hope yall think this meal is as Dahlicious as I do!