Hi everyone…I have decided to give up red meat for Lent. That means eating more fish. The recipes I talked about today are below, but if you want more information about eating sustainable seafood, check out the Ocean Wise program.
Now the recipes:
Salmon Fillets Steamed with Black Bean Sauce – Serves 4
Ingredients:
4 salmon steaks, or 2 boneless, skinless fillets, about 200g each
1 large clove garlic, chopped
3 green onions, diced small
1 2-inch piece of fresh ginger, peeled and cut into thin strips
2 tbsp. salted black beans, rinsed and chopped (available in Asian grocery stores)
½ tsp ground chili pepper paste
1 tbsp. peanut or vegetable oil
1/8 cup soy sauce
1/8 cup dry sherry or sake or chicken stock
chopped cilantro for garnish
Prepare a wok for steaming. If you don’t have a bamboo steamer, arrange 4 chopsticks across the bottom of the wok in a pattern that will support a heatproof bowl or casserole dish. Fill the wok with water just to the bottom of the chopsticks, or to where the bottom of your bamboo steamer will rest. Bring to a boil while you prepare the sauce.
Put the salmon in the bowl or dish. Heat the peanut oil over high heat in a fry pan. When it is almost smoking, add in the green onions, ginger, garlic, black beans and chili paste. Stir and fry until fragrant and the ginger and garlic have softened a bit. Add the soy sauce and sherry and simmer for 30 seconds. Pour over the salmon and put the bowl on the chopsticks or into the bamboo steamer. Cover the bowl with the wok lid, or the lid from your steamer. Steam for about 10 minutes or until the flesh is opaque and flakes easily with a fork. Garnish with chopped cilantro and serve immediately.
Halibut Cheeks in an Eggplant, Bell Pepper and Shitaake Mushroom Sauce – Serves 4
Japanese cooking master Tojo impressed me with this dish many years ago and I have tried to recreate it to the best of my ability. You could also mix in a little bit of miso paste with the sauce mixture and cut back on the oyster sauce to change the flavour a bit. If you can’t find halibut cheeks, any chunks of halibut or similar firm, white-fleshed fish would do as well.
Ingredients:
1 tbsp. peanut or vegetable oil
1 inch of fresh ginger, julienned
1 large clove garlic, minced
3 green onions, sliced on a bias
1 long Japanese eggplant, quartered lengthwise, then cut into 1 inch slices
1 red bell pepper, halved, seeded and cut into slices
½ pound Shiitake or button mushrooms, stemmed and cut in half
1/8 cup oyster sauce
¼ cup soy sauce
¼ cup sherry, sake or dry white wine
½ cup chicken stock
1 pound halibut cheeks, cut into large chunks if necessary
sesame oil, toasted sesame seeds and chopped cilantro for garnish
Heat the peanut oil over medium high heat in a large frying pan. Add in the ginger, garlic, and green onions and sauté until fragrant. Then add the eggplant, bell pepper and mushrooms. Stir and fry until the mushrooms start to soften. Mix together the oyster sauce, soy sauce, sherry and chicken stock and pour over the vegetables. Bring to a simmer; then nestle the halibut cheek chunks into the mixture. Cover and simmer until the fish is just cooked through. Ladle into bowls and drizzle with a few drops of sesame oil, a sprinkle of sesame seeds and the chopped cilantro. Enjoy!
The seafood and vegetables I used for testing these recipes is courtesy of Capers, so far the only retail outlet to join the Ocean Wise program. Good on ya!
