Salmon with Hotel Chocolat Cocoa Mayonnaise

Hotel Chocolat very kindly sent me two products to review - the Cocoa Mayo from their Cocoa Cuisine range, and the Squirrels Stash, below. The Squirrels Stash consists of five chocolates that look like acorns and nuts, which I think is really cute. They are filled with praline, nuts and caramel truffle - and didn't last very long! They are the perfect size for an indulgent treat and would make a lovely little gift - the pack is priced at £5 which at £1 a chocolate is not cheap but they are really good quality and I do recommend these.

The Cocoa Mayo was very interesting and I was excited to try it after previously having tried the Cocoa Pesto and chocolate pasta. When I opened the jar I found the mayo in quite a lot of oil, which was fine once I stirred it. The mayo had a wonderfully tangy (I think slightly vinegary) taste at first, and then you notice the little cocoa nibs, and then finally the aftertaste is chocolate.

I decided to follow this recipe for salmon with a Creole crust that Hotel Chocolat has on its website linked to the cocoa mayonnaise. I love salmon and it seemed like a good way to try out the mayo. I scaled down the recipe but will give the ingredients here to serve 4.

You need:
2 slices bread
2 tbsp chopped fresh coriander
1 garlic clove
1 tsp lime juice
1 tsp grated lime zest
1 tsp Cajun seasoning
115g Hotel Chocolat Cocoa Mayonnaise
4 skinless salmon fillets
salt, pepper

Preheat oven to 200C. Tear up the bread and place in a food processor along with the coriander, crushed garlic clove, lime juice and zest and Cajun seasoning and pulse until you have breadcrumbs.

In a small bowl, mix the spiced breadcrumb mixture with the cocoa mayonnaise.

Spread onto the salmon fillets.

Bake in the oven for about 15 minutes until the salmon is cooked and the cocoa breadcrumb mixture is crispy.

I thought this tasted really nice and the cocoa crust would also work really well on a pork chop for instance; I wonder if you could also use it for stuffing in chicken. I think I might have to try that as well! The Cocoa Mayonnaise costs £8 for a 180g jar so it's not something I would use every day but it definitely makes a nice twist - now all I have to do is try it in a sandwich!

Disclaimer: I was sent the chocolates and Cocoa Mayonnaise by Hotel Chocolat. I was not asked to try out any particular recipe or to write a positive review; all opinions are my own.