I wasn’t planning to write about this, but when I arranged the final product on my plate, I thought I might want to share it, so I snapped a quick picture with my phone.

© Charly, all rights reserved. Click for full size.

After eating the meal, I obviously decided to share it, since you are reading this. I really enjoyed it; I will definitely cook it again, and I’ll improve it. Here is the recipe:

Squash: Cut the fruit lengthwise, deseed, and peel it. Cut into ca. 12 mm (Ann Halfaninch) slices. Cook until soft on low/medium heat in steam to prevent it from dissolving into mush. This will take about 20 minutes, about the time it takes to make all the rest.

Horseradish paste: Wet dehydrated horseradish powder with freshly squeezed lime juice to make a very thin paste. A teaspoon of horseradish powder is enough for two steaks.

Salmon Steak: Salt both sides, wait a bit for it to release juice, then sprinkle both sides with equal amounts of crushed Basil, Rosemary, and Oregano, as much as can stick to the surface. Heat olive oil in a pan to ~180°C (356 Freedummheit), sear on both sides, then lower heat to medium/low and slowly fry both sides until cooked through, without overtly charring the outside. A lot of the spices will fall off; that is why an excess was added at the beginning. Once the steak is done, put it on a warm plate, skin-down, and spread the horseradish paste on the surface while it is still hot.

Sauce: Finely cut small red onions and brown them in hot olive oil. Add a few cut cherry tomatoes, salt, about a spoon of soy sauce, and a sprinkle of white pepper, and stir on medium heat until the tomatoes dissolve. Thicken the sauce with one small slice of cooked squash.

Serving: Put the squash slice and sauce on the plate beside the steak. Pour a bit of olive oil on the squash and sprinkle with salt. Enjoy!

I did enjoy it indeed; that’s why I am sharing it. But I think it could be significantly improved. Butternut squash is a bit bland, and olive oil with a bit of salt didn’t quite cut it; the accompanying sauce was good, but still too mild-flavored for the squash. So next time, I will add a fifth part to the dish – aioli.