For a special occasion dinner this spring, consider cooking up a batch of citrusy slow-roasted salmon with leeks and asparagus. This recipe comes from food writer Lidey Heuck‘s new cookbook, “Cooking in Real Life: Delicious & Doable Recipes for Every Day.”

“This salmon would be delicious as part of a Mother’s Day or Easter spread, but it’s also simple and fast enough for a weeknight,” she writes. “The fish comes out incredibly tender, and because the oven never gets super hot, it’s a lot harder to overcook.”

Slow-Roasted Salmon with Lemony Leeks and Asparagus

Serves 6

INGREDIENTS

2 medium leeks, dark green leaves trimmed

1 lemon, very thinly sliced

5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

2-pound salmon fillet (see tip below), skin removed

1 pound asparagus, trimmed and cut into 3/4-inch pieces

Flaky sea salt, for serving

Fresh dill, for serving

Grated lemon zest, for serving

DIRECTIONS

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees.

Thinly slice the leek crosswise into 1/4-inch-thick rounds. Place the leeks in a large bowl of water, swish them around to loosen any grit, then lift them out with a slotted spoon and transfer to a colander to drain. Pat the leeks dry with a clean kitchen towel and spread them out on a sheet pan.

Add the lemon slices to the sheet pan. Drizzle the leeks and lemon with 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and a few grinds of black pepper.

Transfer to the oven and roast until the leeks are tender and lightly caramelized, about 30 minutes, tossing twice throughout.

Meanwhile, pat the salmon dry and set aside at room temperature.

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Add the asparagus to the sheet pan along with another 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and 1/4 teaspoon salt. Toss well, then push the vegetables to the edges of the pan to create space for the salmon. Place the salmon on the pan, rub all over with the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with 1 teaspoon salt and 1/2 teaspoon pepper.

Return to the oven and roast until the salmon registers 120 to 125 degrees on an instant-read thermometer and flakes easily with a fork, 15 to 25 minutes, depending on the thickness of the fillet. (Because the salmon is cooked so gently in this method, it may still look slightly translucent on top — that’s okay!)

Transfer the salmon and vegetables to a platter, arranging the vegetables around the fish. Sprinkle the salmon with flaky salt, dill and lemon zest. Serve warm or at room temperature.

Tip: If you use a center-cut piece of salmon, it will be cooked evenly the whole way through. If you use a more tapered piece, the ends will be slightly more well done than the center. Both work great, but I often ask for a tapered piece if I know some people prefer their salmon on the well-done side.

— Excerpted from COOKING IN REAL LIFE: Delicious & Doable Recipes for Every Day. Copyright @ 2024 by Lidey Heuck. Photography Copyright © 2024 by Dane Tashima. Reproduced by permission of Simon Element, an imprint of Simon & Schuster. All rights reserved.