Salmon With Choucroute - cooking recipe

Ingredients

4 tablespoons olive oil, divided
1 medium onion, diced fine
1 large carrot, peeled and julienned
22 ounces sauerkraut, rinsed in cold water and drained
1 1/2 cups dry white wine, divided (e.g., pinot grigio, chablis, etc.)
1/2 cup chicken stock or 1/2 cup fish stock
1/4 teaspoon juniper berries, crushed or 1/2 teaspoon crushed pine nuts
1/2 teaspoon fresh thyme leave
1 bay leaf
1/4 teaspoon cracked black pepper
4 (6 ounce) salmon fillets
1 teaspoon salted butter
2 tablespoons cider vinegar
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, cut into small pieces

Preparation

Preheat oven to 350-degrees F.
In a non-stick skillet, saute the julienned carrot and onion in 2 tablespoons of the olive oil until the onion just begins to get tender.
Stir in the sauerkraut, 1/2 cup of the wine, the chicken stock (or fish stock, if using that), the 1 teaspoon of salted butter, juniper berries, thyme, bay leaf and black pepper. Bring to a simmer, cook for 5 minutes and remove from the heat. Pour this blend into a 9\" x 13\" casserole dish.
Using the same skillet, add the 2 remaining tablespoons of olive oil and sear the salmon fillets over medium-high heat until they are lightly browned -- sear the second side for 30 seconds and then transfer them to the sauerkraut blend in the casserole dish. Bake this in the oven for five minutes.
While the dish is baking, using the same skillet, (drained of any oil), add the remaining wine and vinegar and reduce over medium-high heat to 1/4 of its original volume, then add the unsalted butter, piece by piece, whisking until the sauce is creamy, then remove from the heat.
Plate up the Salmon Choucroute from the casserole dish on to 4 individual plates and then drizzle the sauce over each one.