Tonight we made Panko Crusted Salmon, one of our favorite weeknight meals. We paired it with green been sautéed in garlic. Here’s how Tony did it:

I started by making the panko topping. I cut all the ingredient amounts in half, since I was only making half the recipe. This step is pretty simple, but the key is not to add too much olive oil. Add it slowly, stirring constantly, until the panko is just coated.

Next, I spread the mustard on the salmon. I tend to get a little carried away with this step, so there are always one or two bites during the meal that really wake me up! After adding the mustard, I sprinkled the salmon with salt and pepper, and then added the topping. You should spread it evenly, but don’t press down too hard; you want everything to hold together but not be squashed. The picture below gives you a before and after view (or technically, an after and before view) of this last step:

I put the salmon in the fridge and moved on to the green beans. After trimming the ends, I put them in a large bowl with about two tablespoons of regular tap water. I covered the bowl in plastic wrap and put the bowl  the microwave on high for three minutes. While the green beans were in the microwave, I sliced two large cloves of garlic very thinly. After the three minutes were up, I thought the green beans were still a little tough, so I covered the bowl up again and put it back in the microwave for two more minutes.

I put the salmon into a 425 degree oven and set a timer for ten minutes. With this recipe, I always skip the step that calls for searing the salmon, skin side down, in a skillet. The crispy skin is a nice touch, but it’s never been worth the clean up as far as I’m concerned. While the salmon cooked, I sautéed the garlic in olive oil over medium-low heat for about a minute or so and the added the green beans. I cooked them, stirring occasionally, until the timer went off.

Since the salmon filets were a little thicker than usual, they were a little under-done in the middle of the thickest part. This wasn’t  problem for us (we thought they tasted great), but you should adjust the cooking time to get the doneness you want. The green beans, however, were just right, though four minutes in the microwave would have worked too. We paired this with a nice rose that were were pleasantly surprised to find in the fridge, left over from an earlier dinner.