The Christian holiday of Good Friday is treated by the Catholic Church as a ‘fast day’. This means that it is not permitted by the church to cook red meats or pork or to indulge in alcoholic beverages. Because of this many Christian countries have a traditional ‘Fish Friday’, whereby the main meal of the day is a fish dinner often smaller than a typical meal.

Due to the restriction of not being allowed alcohol, it can eliminate a lot of white fish recipes but fish such as salmon are still firmly on the menu. Here are some tasty, traditional and easy salmon recipes for Good Friday:

 Herb Baked Salmon

Going back to basics not only provides you with much easier and faster recipes, but can also deliver a delicious dinner. Herb baked salmon can be finished from start to finish in under an hour and doesn’t include anything which isn’t traditionally allowed on Good Friday. The ingredients you need include:

2 salmon fillets
• 2-4 Tbsp. of chopped thyme, dill or parsley
• ½ tsp. freshly ground black pepper
• ½ tsp. sea salt
• 1 tsp. oil

How to Cook:
1) Heat up the Oven to 100°C (yes one hundred Celsius)
2) Smear the oil on an oven-proof serving dish and place the fish on top. Add the herbs and seasoning to the top of the fish (both sides if it is skilled).
Tip: lightly brush the fish with oil to ensure the seasoning sticks
3) Bake the fish for 40-45 minutes or until the salmon begins to flake. Then take out and serve straight away. This goes very well with roast vegetables and tartar sauce and the succulent moist fish may quickly become a family favourite.

[Source]

Salmon & Leek Parcels

This is a slightly more complicated recipe than the one above, but it is still relatively easy and from start to finish it takes under an hour. Again, all the ingredients comply with the rules of Good Friday making this a perfect dish for even the most devote Catholic. What you need for this dish:

• 4 Leeks – trimmed and finely chopped
• 25g of butter
• 100g cream cheese or full-fat crème fraiche
• 6 sheets filo pastry
• 2 skinless salmon fillets

How to Cook:
1) Heat the Oven to 200°C
2) Put the leeks into a large saucepan and add a few tablespoons of water and a knob of butter. Cover the pan and cook for around 10 minutes or until tender. Once tender remove from the pan and allow to cool before mixing with the cream cheese or crème fraiche.
3) To make the parcels you need to mush a sheet of pastry with melted butter and then lay 2 more sheets on top ensuring that you brush the melted butter between each layer. Place a salmon fillet in the centre of the pastry, season it with salt and pepper then spoon over half the leek mix.
4) Fold the end of the pastry over the top of the fillet, pull up the sides and then scrunch it all together in order to seal it. Repeat this process with the second fillet.
5) Brush both the parcels with melted butter and place them onto a baking sheet, cooking for 20-25mins until golden brown and crispy. Serve hot with a green salad end enjoy!