- 225g/7oz unsalted butter, softened
- small handful fresh parsley
- small handful fresh chives
- large handful fresh sorrel leaves (if you can't get sorrel you can use extra parsley and chives or tarragon or basil and add a squeeze or two of lemon juice)
- a drizzle of olive oil
- 4 portions salmon fillet, skin-on, about 170g/6oz each
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
- lemon wedges
- a few sprigs of parsley and lengths of chive
- First make the herb butter. Place the butter in the bowl of a food processor.
- Chop the herbs roughly. You should aim for two tablespoon each of parsley and chives; there will be more of the sorrel. Place the herbs into the bowl with the butter. Process until the herbs are finely chopped, scraping down the bowl with a spatula once or twice if necessary. (If you don't have a processor, chop the herbs finely, then beat into the softened butter.)
- Scrape the butter onto a sheet of silver foil, pat into a sausage shape, roll up and chill in the fridge until needed. (Herb butters can be frozen for up to a month.)
- For the salmon, add the olive oil to a non-stick frying pan and carefully wipe up any excess oil with kitchen paper – you don't want a lot of oil in the pan. When the pan's hot, add the salmon, skin-side down first, and cook for 2-3 minutes, depending on the thickness of your salmon, without moving it around at all. This will ensure the skin doesn't stick to the pan.
- While the salmon is cooking, remove the butter from the fridge and slice off eight discs with a hot knife (using a hot knife creates a clean cut).
- Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then turn the fish over and cook for a further 1-2 minutes or so, until the salmon is cooked but still has a line of translucent, darker pink flesh in its centre. This slight 'undercooking' keeps the salmon moist and tender.
- To serve, lay the salmon on warm serving plates and top with a slice or two of green butter. Tuck a lemon wedge in on the side and garnish with the parsley and chives, if you like.