Broiled Salmon with Hawaiian BBQ Sauce

 

So the other part of Guinea Pig Dad's Happy Pappy Day feast on Sunday was a little Southern Seas-inspired fish dish that I whipped up for the seafood lover in him.

This taste treat was the result of a conversation I had with my friend Cooper who told me his family makes this delicious grilled salmon with a Hawaiian BBQ sauce.  But since he couldn't remember exactly what all the ingredients were and in what quantity they were used, we brainstormed a list of potential things that could work (in case he forgot to send me the recipe, which he did forget to do, silly Cooper!) and I just ran with it up from there.  I love it when a culinary experiments comes together!

You'll want to make the BBQ sauce about an hour before you plan to cook the salmon so that the flavors have time to sit together and blend.  It only take 10 minutes to prep and cook the salmon once the BBQ sauce is ready.

Broiled Salmon with Hawaiian BBQ Sauce

1-1/2 to 1-3/4 lbs. salmon (with or without skin on one side)

the "rub"
3/4 tsp. chili powder
1/2 tsp. cumin
1/2 tsp. smoked paprika

Hawaiian BBQ Sauce
1 (15 oz.) can plain tomato sauce
1 (8 oz.) can crushed or chunk pineapple
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
2/3 cup brown sugar, loose not packed
1 tsp. smoked paprika
1 cinnamon stick

In a large bowl, combine all the ingredients for the BBQ sauce.  Cover and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.

When the sauce is ready, strain it into a saucepan and set aside.

Turn the oven broiler on and set the over rack on the 2nd level down from the top.

Take your salmon and cut it into 4-5 oz. individual fillets.  If you bought it with skin-on, leave it on during the cooking process, will be easier to remove once the fillets are cooked.

 

With the skin-side down, sprinkle the "rub" on the top half.

Place the fillets on a broiling pan and cover with a spoonful or two of the BBQ sauce.

Put on the rack in the oven and cook for 5-6 minutes or until the salmon flakes apart and is opaque in the center.

While the salmon is cooking, bring the rest of the BBQ sauce to a boil over medium-high heat.  Remove from heat and add to salmon once it's been served.

All done and yum.

NOTES

Don't forget that there is a piece of skin under the salmon.  Once the fish is cooked, it is very easy to remove.

Special Dad Note:  if your daughter is serving the salmon over rice, put the cooked salmon sauce-side down on the pile of rice, remove skin from bottom, pour more sauce on top.  Less muss, less fuss, more sauce, all good.

In this recipe, you don't want to substitute regular Paprika for Smoked Paprika because you really want to bit of that smoked flavor.  The recipe that Cooper and his family use actually uses Liquid Smoke so if you had that instead, just substitute with a dash or two and you should be set.

Salmon goes really well with whole grain or brown rice.  Mom made a nice fruit & veggie Waldorf salad variation on the side (which I will try to make for another post).

If you don't like salmon, but want to use it on fish, make sure to use another heavier fish (versus a light white fish) so that it holds up to the sauce.  Anything lighter will just get overwhelmed.

The Hawaiian BBQ Sauce would go really well with grilled chicken or on pork, like pork ribs or pork chops.