Are there any more celebrated superfoods than wild-caught salmon and blueberries? Pairing them here may seem odd at first, but trust us when we say this recipe with a balsamic-meets-berry sauce from Orchard: Over 70 Sweet and Savoury Recipes from the English Countryside is an absolute dream. 

We’ve noticed more and more nutritionists adding blueberries to savory lunch and dinner plates lately, and we love to see it. Blueberries have earned their time-tested reputation as a highly nutritious and health-advantageous food, and there are few more easy and delicious to incorporate into our diets.

In Orchard, author James Rich includes an abundance of fresh and cooked fruits in his recipes, including pears, plums, cherries, strawberries, gooseberries, elderflower, blackberries as well and quinces, medlars and apples. As a cider-maker’s son dividing his time between Somerset and London, it makes sense that Rich would include so much fruit in recipes that reflect his version of English countryside eating.

This cookbook is for anyone who loves rustic countryside recipes and is looking to incorporate a greater diversity of produce in their daily diet!

Says James, ‘A side of salmon is a great alternative to more traditional celebration meals, whether that is your weekly Sunday roast or something for a special occasion. And eating it with this delicious blueberry and dill sauce is a treat!’

Salmon With Blueberry + Dill Sauce

SERVES 6

Ingredients:
For the salmon…
1 lb + 14 oz side of salmon
1 lemon
1/2 oz dill, finely chopped
1 tbsp maple syrup
2 tsp rapeseed oil
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the blueberry sauce…
10 + 1/2 oz fresh or frozen blueberries
1/2 oz dill
2 tbsp caster (superfine) sugar
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar

For serving…
roughly chopped dill
lemon wedges
pea shoots

Directions:
1. Preheat the fan oven to 350 F.
2. Line a large baking tin with baking parchment, add the salmon and season generously with salt and pepper.
3. Finely grate the zest of the lemon and combine in a small bowl with the juice of half of it, the dill, maple syrup and oil. Briefly whisk to combine before pouring over the seasoned salmon, ensuring all the flesh is coated in the marinade.
4. Bake the salmon for 20–25 minutes until the flesh is just firm to the touch and the marinade is starting to caramelize. Remove from the oven and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
5. In the meantime, make the blueberry sauce. Cook the blueberries in a heavy-bottomed saucepan with the dill, sugar and balsamic vinegar over a medium heat until the fruit starts to break down, stirring to ensure the fruit doesn’t catch. Then, simmer for 5–6 minutes until the sauce is a thick, jammy consistency. Pour into a serving dish.
6. Transfer the salmon onto a serving dish using the baking parchment. Discard the paper and garnish the salmon with more dill, lemon wedges and pea shoots. Serve with the blueberry sauce.

Excerpted with permission from Orchard by James Rich, published by Hardie Grant, October 2022