Salmon and Asparagus, Nuf Said

This is one of my favorite meals. Only five simple ingredients, and that includes the salmon and asparagus. I especially love it because everything is cooked on the grill, meaning I don't have to heat up my kitchen.

First thing you'll want to do is fire-up your grill. Salmon is best cooked with indirect heat, meaning you don't want the flames getting to the meat. If you don't have a grill with indirect heat, here are some tips. If you have multiple burners, turn on the burners on one side of the grill and then put your salmon on the other side. If you are using a charcoal grill, move your coals over to the side opposite of where you'll be putting the fish. Oh, and don't forget to oil your grates.

Let's start with those two ingredients that get top-billing.

Just plain salmon and asparagus. As if there's ever anything really plain about them.

Salmon first.

Brush both sides of the fillets with melted butter. You could use olive oil, but butter has so much more flavor.

Next up, another star of the show.

A little bit of salt, a little bit of citrus and good amount of black pepper really brings out the flavor of both of our headliners. 

Sprinkle both sides of your salmon fillets, though the skin side doesn't need quite as much. 

And that's it. It's ready for the grill.

Put the salmon on skin side down.

Close the lid and, depending on how hot your grill is (I recommend roughly 400 degrees), let it cook for approximately 7 minutes, depending on how thick your fillets are. If you're not sure, peak at it every couple of minutes to check the progress.

Asparagus time.

Drizzle your cut asparagus with a little bit of olive oil. Yes, I use olive oil for this one, because the asparagus was cold and we all know what happens when we put melted but on cold things. It turns into chunks and falls off.

Sprinkle on a little bit of the lemon pepper.

I like to do all of this in one of those reusable tubs that lunchmeat comes in, because the sides are just tall enough for me to do this without anything falling out.

Yep, I'm just tossing the asparagus around so that everything is coated with oil and lemon pepper.

Time to check on the salmon.

This is how it should look midway through. Now you're ready to flip it over and let it go for another 7-8 minutes.

Perfection.

Set the salmon aside and put your coated asparagus on the grill.

Spread them out so they're not overlapping. (Yeah, I missed one or two)

Close the lid and grill for 2-3 minutes, depending on the thickness of the asparagus.

Flip them over.

They should have just a hint of char to them.

Let them got for another 2 minutes and voila.

Dinner is served.

Light, easy and oh so delicious.

Hey, I recently heard a doctor on the radio, giving tips on how to reduce stress. Of course, he mentioned exercise, reducing caffeine (like that's going to happen) and sugar, but he also said that salmon was a great stress reducer. I did not know that. However, considering this author has only one week left until her deadline, BRING ON THE SALMON.