salmon rush pie

Salman Rushdie’s magical realism mixed with historical fiction produced a work in 1988 that drew violent protests from Muslims, in which death threats were issued against him by the Ayatollah Khomeini, then the Supreme Leader of Iran.

This recipe doesn’t have anything to do with any of that. But I didn’t want you to be confused by the title’s resemblance to the distinguished author. What we have here is a simple, delicious, quickly assembled salmon loaf worthy of your consideration. I had thought, only briefly, of entitling the dish Salmon Ellen, in honor of my niece. But, on reflection, the current title prevailed.

Salmon is such a wonderful fish to simply broil or pan fry or poach or bake, that one might ask “Why go to more trouble?”

Well, it is just a little more trouble, but not too much. The wait is a little longer because it has to bake, and that does take some time. For this reason, it is best to make it ahead of time. In fact, I think it is best when it is cold and eaten for lunch.

The reason for making this dish is that it is another tasty way to eat salmon, just in case you become jaded with its other modalities.

  • ½ lb salmon, skinned
  • ½ cup dry white wine
  • 2 scallions, chopped
  • ¼ cup mushrooms, diced
  • ½ medium carrot, diced
  • 1 tsp lemon juice
  • ½ tsp clam base or fish bouillon cube
  • 1/8 tsp pepper
  • 2 tsp fresh parsley, chopped
  • ½ cup textured vegetable protein (TVP)
  • 2 large eggs, beaten
  • 4 oz Swiss cheese, grated
  • 1 large lower G. I. tortilla

Put the salmon, wine, scallions, mushrooms, carrot, and lemon juice in a microwave bowl. Cover with a lid or plastic wrap and microwave for a total of 6 minutes on high.

Drain the liquid from the salmon mixture into a glass bowl and add water, if necessary, to make ½ cup of liquid. Add the TVP to this, stir, and microwave on high for 30 seconds to reconstitute the TVP. Let cool somewhat.

In the bowl with the salmon, flake the salmon, add pepper, parsley, and reconstituted TVP. Fold the ingredients together, and then add the eggs and cheese. Mix well.

Grease a loaf or pie pan. Run the tortilla under cold water momentarily to soften it somewhat. Then line the pan with the tortilla. Fill the pan with the salmon mixture. Bake at 350°F for about an hour, or until it passes the toothpick test.