Pairings | Seared salmon
12 great wine pairings with salmon
Salmon is in many ways the chicken of the fish world - an ingredient you can serve in many different ways and therefore match with a number of different wines.
That said, it’s a rich fish, often served with cream or butter and therefore a natural candidate to pair with a medium-to-full-bodied white wine such as chardonnay.
But nowadays it’s often served raw or grilled which opens to the door to many other pairings including red wine. Read on for my suggestions with different salmon recipes.
12 favourite ways to serve salmon and the wines to pair with them
Raw salmon such as salmon sashimi or tartare
Try a crisp fresh white such as a gruner veltliner or a dry rosé - a surprisingly good match with salmon sashimi as I discovered here.
Salmon ceviche
As much about the zesty marinade as the fish itself. Torrontes from Argentina is a good pairing or - an unusual match but one I found worked well a while back - a Soave from Italy
Cold poached salmon with mayonnaise or a salmon terrine
Chablis is an incredibly reliable pairing for this kind of dish but other crisp dry whites like Pinot Grigio, Albarino, Sancerre or a crisp Chenin Blanc will match well too.
Warm salmon with a hollandaise or beurre blanc sauce
A classic salmon dish that matches well with a good quality oak-aged (but not too oaky) Chardonnay. White burgundy would be lovely. See also this pairing of salmon with leeks and chardonnay
Salmon en croute or fish pies with salmon
Again likely to be rich and creamy so Chardonnay should again hit the spot or try an old vine Chenin Blanc. See also this delicious recipe for salmon in pastry with currants and ginger.
Salmon en Papillote
Salmon en Papillote i.e. salmon fillets baked in parchment paper along with vegetables, herbs, and perhaps a splash of white wine. The steaming effect in the papillote results in richly flavoured dish, best suited to a buttery, oak-aged Chardonnay.
Salmon fishcakes or salmon hash
Chardonnay again (this is getting boring but it is the most reliable wine pairing with salmon!). But a sparkling wine like Cava - or even champagne - can be good too with salmon fishcakes. For more ideas see my post on best wines for fishcakes.
Seared or grilled salmon
Here’s where things get interesting. Because salmon is a meaty fish if you grill or char it you can pair it with a red. Pinot Noir is my favourite match but a Gamay would rub along happily too. If you prefer a white try a dry Pinot Gris.
Blackened or barbecued salmon
If you cook salmon with Cajun- or Creole-style spicing it can handle an even more robust red still. Try a Merlot
Salmon teriyaki or yakitori
A fruity Pinot Noir is also a good wine match with Japanese style dishes such as salmon teriyaki or yakitori. Sake or fino sherry would be a good pairing too.
Tandoori salmon
With Indian spicing I’d be inclined to go for a white such as a dry riesling or pinot gris rather than a red. See this recipe for yoghurt and spice roasted salmon for inspiration. Or read about this surprising fino sherry pairing.
Smoked Salmon
Champagne is the classic wine pairing for smoked salmon but I tend to prefer lighter, crisper whites like Sancerre or Chablis. Learn more in my top 10 drink pairings with smoked salmon.
The best food pairings for cabernet franc
Cabernet franc can be the most food-friendly of wines, as good with fish and veggies as it is with meat but it comes in several styles. If you’re looking for a food match for cabernet franc I’d be mainly thinking of the lighter more fragrant Loire type which stars on its own in such appellations as Saumur, Saumur-Champigny, Bourgeuil, St Nicolas de Bourgeuil and Chinon. Even then it can vary from vintage to vintage and from lighter wines to more serious oak-aged examples.
In this post, you’ll find the best food pairings (and some favourite recipes) for
* Fresh, young Loire cabernet franc
* Mature, oak-aged Loire cabernet franc
* More full-bodied cabernet franc from countries such as Argentina, California and South Africa
Fresh young Loire cabernet franc
Young cabernet franc has a distinctly herbal quality and tends to pair well with dishes flavoured with herbs, especially dill, fennel, rosemary and tarragon. Think chicken with herbs like roast chicken with herby crème fraîche or this lavash, chicken and herb pie with barberries, both from Olia Hercules, a herb-crusted rack of lamb or a navarin of lamb
It also has an affinity with green vegetables especially when they’re grilled or roasted - such as grilled asparagus (as you can see here), purple sprouting broccoli and even grilled artichokes. If you’ve got a vegetarian dish of spring vegetables such as asparagus, peas and broad beans you should reach for a bottle. And while it wouldn’t be my first choice with a spanakopita (Greek-style spinach pie) - I’d rather drink a crisp white - it would definitely work.
Pair it with herby Ottolengi-ish salads with bulgur, freekeh or other grains, especially with a herb dressing.
Evan Goldstein in his book Daring Pairings suggests enchiladas verdes, a combination I haven’t tried but I can definitely see would work. Anything with a tomatillo salsa too.
Like gamay, Loire cabernet franc also works well with charcuterie especially terrines and patés
Lightly chilled it can be a really useful pairing for fish, especially grilled tuna or salmon
It’s also good with goats cheese, young pecorino and other young sheep cheeses
and like Beaujolais you can pour it over or drink it with strawberries
More mature oak aged Loire cabernet franc
I’d be thinking of lamb again though maybe slow roast shoulder or a butterflied leg of lamb rather than rosy little lamb cutlets. Steak frites too.
I’d be more inclined to go for duck than chicken and feathered game such as pigeon (squab) pheasant and partridge
It would also work with light offal dishes such as kidneys or sweetbreads. Classic French bistro food.
Riper, more full-bodied cabernet franc from countries such as Argentina, California and South Africa
These behave quite like malbec in terms of wine pairing so red meat, especially steak, is an obvious go to. You could easily drink it with a barbecue including spicy sausages such as chorizo and merguez or with kebabs.
Read more about my take on cabernet franc in my recent Guardian column.
Note: Cabernet franc also plays a major part in Bordeaux blends including some of the most famous Bordeaux reds such as Cheval Blanc and in South America where it is generally riper and more full-bodied.
If you’re looking for a match for Bordeaux blends check out this post: What food to pair with red Bordeaux
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