Glazed, oven-roasted salmon is at once sensible and elegant: The glistening fish is uncomplicated enough to be a no-brainer for the workday scramble, but it’s also glitzy enough for guests. Like any straightforward dish, though, a little care and attention go a long way. Here, I hoped that a thoughtful preparation would lead to juicy, bronzed fillets glossed with a spectrum of sweet-tart-savory flavors.
Doing the Two-Step
Before I could dream up glazes, I needed to settle on a cooking method. Sending the salmon for a quick swim in a salty brine was a critical first step: It ensured that every bite was moist and well seasoned and greatly limited the formation of unsightly albumin (white blobs of protein).
After lifting four fillets (for equal sizing, buy a center-cut piece and divide it into four) from the saline solution,
