ROAST SALMON STEAKS WITH PINOT NOIR SYRUP

"I first had this mysterious, dark, extraordinary delicious sauce in the fine Seattle restaurant called Brasa, when it first opened. It’s a kind of gastrique, a relatively simple sauce based on caramelized sugar that is markedly complex.

Note that if the sugar turns black and begins to smoke, you have burned rather than caramelized it. Throw it out and start again, with lower heat and more patience this time. And if the caramel sticks to your pan and utensils when you’re done, boil some water in the pan, with the utensils in there if necessary. The caramel will loosen right away."

1/2 cup sugar
2 cups Pinot Noir
1 fresh rosemary sprig, plus 1 teaspoon chopped
4 salmon steaks (about 1/2 pound each)
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon of butter

Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.

Put the sugar in a heavy saucepan, preferably nonstick and with rounded sides, and turn the heat to medium. Cook without stirring (just shake the pan occasionally to redistribute the sugar) until the sugar liquefies and begins to turn brown, about 10 minutes.

Turn off the heat and carefully add the wine. Turn the heat to high and cook, stirring, until the caramel dissolves again. Then add the rosemary sprig and reduce over high heat, stirring occasionally, until the mixture is syrupy and reduced to just over 1/2 a cup, 10 to 15 minutes.

Heat a nonstick skillet over high heat until it begins to smoke. Season the salmon on both sides with salt and pepper, then put it in the pan; immediately put the pan in the oven. Cook for 3 minutes, then turn the salmon and cook for another 3 minutes. Check to see that the salmon is medium-rare or thereabouts (it should be) and remove it and keep it warm, or cook for another minute or two if you like.

When the sauce is reduced, stir in the balsamic vinegar and butter and turn the heat to medium-low. Cook until the butter melts, add some salt and pepper, and remove the rosemary sprig. Taste and adjust the seasoning, then serve over the fish, garnished with the chopped rosemary.

VARIATIONS:

SEED-RUBBED SALMON
Combine 2 tablespoons shelled raw pumpkin seeds and about 2 tablespoons dried porcini pieces in a coffee or spice grinder and grind to a coarse powder. Press some of the mixture in to the top (nonskin side) of each of the fillets and cook as directed.

SPICE-RUBBED SALMON
Combine 1 tablespoon coriander seeds or ground coriander, 1/4 teaspoon while or ground cloves, 1 1/2 teaspoons cumin seeds or ground cumin, and I teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg (grind all together if necessary). Press some of the mixture into the top (nonskin side) of each of the fillets and cook as directed.

Makes 4 servings
Excerpted from Mark Bittman's Quick and Easy Recipes from the New York Times by Mark Bittman
Copyright © 2007 by Mark Bittman. Excerpted by permission of Broadway, a division of Random House, Inc. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.