Once you’ve tried a piece of roast salmon smothered in our red-wine butter, you won’t want to go back to the the typical white-wine sauce.

SERVES 4 // COOK TIME 90 min

INGREDIENTS
1 cup dry red wine
2 shallots, peeled and chopped
145 g unsalted butter, softened
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
6–8 baby leeks, washed and halved
4 sprigs thyme, finely chopped
2 sprigs origanum, finely chopped
1 tsp crushed fennel seeds
⅓ cup dry white wine
2 cups thick cream
1 tbsp lemon juice
2 salmon fillets
3 tbsp olive oil
1 clove garlic, peeled and finely chopped

METHOD
1. Preheat oven to 170°C and line a baking tray.
2. Combine red wine and shallots in a pan and bring to the boil over high heat. Boil until reduced to 1 tbsp, about 15 minutes. Strain the wine through a fine sieve into a bowl, and discard the shallots.
3. Let the wine cool slightly, then add 100g butter and season with salt and pepper.
4. Transfer the red-wine butter to a sheet of cling film and roll tightly into a cylinder. Twist the ends of the cling film to seal. Chill until firm.
5. Melt 3 tbsp butter in a pan over medium-high heat. Add the leeks, thyme, origanum, fennel and salt. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the leeks are slightly wilted, about 2 minutes.
6. Add the white wine to the pan and cook, stirring occasionally, until almost all the liquid has evaporated, about 8 minutes. Remove the leeks and set aside.
7. Add the cream and lemon juice to the sauce, and cook over low heat until the cream has thickened, about 25 minutes.
8. Place the salmon on the lined baking tray. Sprinkle with olive oil and garlic, and roast for about 20 minutes.
9. Cut 4 thick slices of the red-wine butter, place 2 on top of each fillet, and cook for a further 3 minutes, until melted.
10. Spoon some of the sauce over the salmon and serve with the leeks.

For a delicious crowd-pleasing dish try our Paella!