Sunday at the Village Vanguard | Bill Evans Trio

If I had to select just two recipes to represent my entire cookbook, it would be my Take Five Pancakes and this Grilled Salmon with Dijon-Soy Marinade. The salmon receives more complements than any other recipe I make. It’s totally delicious, fail-proof, superbly easy with only three ingredients, flexible to pair with most any cuisine or side dish, and makes use of my favorite cooking medium, the grill. I modified Barefoot Contessa’s recipe to amp up the flavor for this marinade.

The flavors are a delightful pairing with salmon. The origin of this recipe was Ina Garten’s Barefoot Contessa salmon recipe, but I tried to recall it from memory and completely missed the amounts, but yielded a result that I prefer with a lot more punch from the higher ratio of dijon to soy sauce and less oil to allow for a better caramelization process.

I’ve tried many salmon preparations over the years and can’t find any that outshine this one.

Making Grilled Salmon with Dijon-Soy Marinade

Grill the salmon until it’s almost, but not quite done. The salmon continues cooking when it leaves the grill and will finish perfectly if left tented under foil for a few minutes. Grill over high heat, ideally on a charcoal grill, or gas. If making indoors, I like to broil the salmon instead because the high heat is great for caramelizing the soy sauce and achieving the delicious and attractive browning effect on the fish.

High heat is really the unwritten ingredient here, which caramelizes the soy sauce and makes the skin perfectly crispy for any fans of salmon skin out there.

Choose salmon fillets for this dish, checking for bones before cooking by running your finger lightly along the top of the flesh.

Grilled salmon alongside sauteed kale, roasted potatoes, and fresh bread.

About the music: Sunday at the Village Vanguard by Bill Evans Trio

Sunday at the Village Vanguard is a relaxed but masterful live recording by Evans, perfect for a Sunday evening BBQ or dinner party. I couldn’t pick a single track on this album to recommend — the best way to hear the album is in its entirety, twice in a row. The first time while making this dinner, and the second time while enjoying it.

This recipe had the honor of being featured on WORT, Madison’s community radio station, in September 2026. The jazz program Journeys into Jazz was kind enough to host me to talk about the cookbook and this recipe.

Genuine Dad Equipment Recommendation: Weber Charcoal Grill

Hello, dads and dad-adjacents. Here’s a Genuine Dad Equipment Recommendation* for your kitchen. A charcoal grill is a great way to do summer cooking to feed a crowd with minimal cleanup. It also imbues food with the unbeatable smoky taste only attainable on a charcoal grill. We use our grill for veggies, meat, fish, grillable cheeses, and more. On our porch, we use the Weber Original Charcoal Grill (Amazon link).

This grill is superb because of the cleaning system which makes clearing ash away a breeze, the patented shape which enhances cooking, and thermometer for knowing temperature of the interior. As of writing it’s available for $219 which is a steal for a grill that will last for decades.

*Genuine Dad Equipment Recommendations are real, tested recommendations for equipment I’ve used for years in my kitchen. These recommendations are exclusive to Dads Jazz Cookbook. I only recommend products that I have personally found to be durable, high-utility, and nearly essential for my cooking.

Album Pairing: Sunday at the Village Vanguard | Bill Evans Trio

🎵 Listen to the album while you cook or eat 🎵

Cook Grilled Salmon with Dijon-Soy Marinade

Grilled Salmon with Dijon-Soy Marinade

This salmon is deliciously savory and simple but the marinade has a powerful taste which compliments the fish perfectly. I’ve tried many salmon preparations over the years and can’t find any that outshine this one, with its full flavor and unbeatable prep time. Sunday at the Village Vanguard is a relaxed but masterful live recording by Evans, perfect for a Sunday evening BBQ or dinner party.

Ready in 20

Servings 3

Ingredients

1 lb salmon
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp soy sauce
1 Tbsp dijon mustard

Instructions

Heat a charcoal grill to high or, if using oven, heat oven to 425° F.
Mix olive oil, soy sauce, and dijon mustard in a small bowl.
Dump half of marinade on salmon. Use hands to ensure marinade covers the entire piece(s) of fish on all sides. Let salmon rest 10-30 minutes.
Grill for 4-5 minutes per side per inch on the grill or bake for 13 minutes or until internal temperature reaches 145° F. Keep in mind, salmon will keep cooking while it rests, so it’s ok to take off the heat before it reaches desired temperature.
After removing salmon from the heat, pour remaining marinade on salmon.

Notes

Make a boxed rice pilaf mix and saute kale with broth, chili flakes, and honey to serve on the side.

Album: Sunday at the Village Vanguard | Bill Evans Trio

Keywords easy grilled fish, grilled salmon, healthy fish recipe, salmon marinade, soy salmon, summer grilling

Love this recipe-album pairing? Get a copy of Dads Jazz Cookbook, including this and many other delicious treats!