“I’m a tikka kinda girl. I’m ashamed to say that as much as I try to pretend to be a food connoisseur, I order a Chicken Tikka Masala every single time from the curry house,” admits food writer Poppy O’Toole.
“This twist on a tikka brings it to a gorgeously fresh piece of salmon. Once wrapped up in your flat bread with lashings of mango chutney and cucumber salad, you’ll never turn back.”
Poppy O’Toole’s tikka salmon recipe
Ingredients:
(Serves 4)
The core
1 recipe quantity of Easy Flat Breads (4 flat breads; see below)
For the salmon:
400g/14oz boneless salmon fillet (skin on)
3tbsp tandoori masala powder
2tbsp Greek or coconut-milk yogurt
Juice of 1 lemon
1tbsp olive oil
Salt and black pepper
For the cucumber salad:
Juice of 1 lime
½ cucumber, sliced into ribbons *TIP!
A small bunch of coriander, leaves picked and chopped
A small bunch of mint, leaves picked and chopped
A pinch of flaky salt
To serve:
Mango chutney
1 red chilli, sliced into rounds (optional; deseeded for less heat)
Bombay mix (optional)
For the flat breads: (makes 4)
250g/9oz plain flour, plus extra for dusting
250g/9oz Greek yogurt (or 125ml/½ cup warm water + 2tbsp vegetable oil, if you’re vegan)
1tsp onion seeds, poppy seeds or sesame seeds
1tsp baking powder
Salt and black pepper
Method:
1. Preheat the oven to 200°C/180°C fan/400°F/Gas 6. Line a baking tray with baking paper.
2. Make the flat breads: in a bowl mix all the ingredients – flour, yogurt, seeds, baking powder and seasoning – into a dough. Knead for about three minutes, to a soft but not sticky ball. Cover with a clean tea towel and leave for 10 minutes to rest.
3. Cut the ball into four equal pieces and use a rolling pin to roll each one out to a thin round. You’re aiming for them to be about 12cm/5 inches in diameter – but don’t worry if they look rustic in shape. Set aside the rolled-flat flat breads on a lightly floured surface.
4. Place a large, dry frying pan over a high heat. Leave it to get hot, then throw in the first flat bread – no oil, no butter, nothing… just dry, hot heat. Once bubbles start to form in the dough (about 30 seconds) and you’ve got a little bit of char on the underside, flip over the flat bread and cook the other side for about 30 seconds, to get a little bit of char there, too. Keep warm while you do the same with the remaining three flat breads.
5. Pat the fish dry with kitchen paper, then place it on to the lined tray.
6. Mix all the remaining salmon ingredients in a bowl to create a marinade, then use this for smothering your salmon. You want a nice, thick layer.
7. Leave the salmon to marinate at room temperature for 10 minutes, then put the tray in the oven and bake the salmon for 20 minutes, until opaque and cooked through.
8. Meanwhile, make the cucumber salad. Mix together the lime juice, the cucumber ribbons and both the herbs. Season with the salt and set aside.
9. Heat a dry frying pan over a high heat until it’s smoking hot. Place the flat breads in the pan and warm through. (Or reheat them in a microwave.) Set aside and keep them warm until you’re ready to use.
10. Once the salmon is ready, smother the flat breads in mango chutney, top with gorgeous flakes of pink salmon and cover with your cucumber salad. I like to add an extra kick with some slices of chilli, and texture with extra-crunchy Bombay mix. That’s it. Fold and eat.
*CHEF’S TIP: To get ribbons from a cucumber, simply use a speed peeler and slice off lengths in the same spot all the way through. Behold! A pile of long, thin cucumber ribbons.
Poppy Cooks: The Food You Need by Poppy O’Toole, photography by Louise Hagger, is published by Bloomsbury. Available now.
