on Sunday morning, a food post.

[lagilman]

EtA: B&N is having a 1-day special - MASTERING THE ART OF FRENCH COOKING by Julia Child, half-price. Mmmmjsut sayin'.


Before I commit recipe, a plug.

Over the past year or so, my mom has been part of a team putting together a cookbook with the 60+ Program at the 92nd St Y in NYC. But it's not 'just' a cookbook - it's a collection of family recipes, tested and tried over the years (some of them from my own family!). Not "celebrity chef" recipes or fancy dinners, but satisfying, mostly disaster-proof meals that, in several cases, came to America carried only in the memory of someone's mother or grandmother. I use it myself... (it has our flourless chocolate cake recipe in it, for those of you who ever drooled over that particular slice of nirvana...) So, nu, check it out...


and now, my recipe for Arctic Char from last week, which turned out perfectly...

2 six ounce filets of arctic char*, skin on
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 small shallot, minced (or, in my case, a mall Spanish onion)
1/2 cup red wine (I used Gamay; Pinot Noir would also be good).)
1/2 tablespoon unsalted butter

Crack salt and pepper over the fish, to your preference. Heat a large heavy skillet @ moderate heat levels (don't rush this). Add the olive oil and when heated, add the fish (I put skin side down first, other recipes disagree). Cook for about 4 minutes, flip and cook for another 3 minutes, for a 1" thick fillet. Transfer the fish to a heated plate and cover with foil.

Pour off any fat in the pan. Return the pan to low heat and add the onion/shallot. Saute for about 1 minute or until the onion softens/becomes translucent. Add the wine and cook until the liquid is reduced by about half. Add the butter [slicing it first works best] and swirl to blend. Keep the heat moderate while doing this -- trying to rush this part never ends well.

Plate the fish** and pour over the red wine sauce. Serve immediately.





*I love char, but you can also use this for salmon or trout.
** I served it over root veggies and baby spinach, pan-roasted with garlic until wilted. Not only yummy and healthy but colorful! (green, orange and white, vs the pale red of the fish)

Comments

[mtlawson.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the recipe. These flourless recipes will come in handy, as my sister-in-law has Celiac.

[mevennen.livejournal.com]

I do enjoy people's culinary posts (thank you for this one). They've come to represent oases of sanity and normality in amongst the chaos (I mean, the chaos of life in general, not specifically LiveJournal). I think they're a kind of symbol to me that we're all just getting on with it and doing good stuff.

[lagilman]

It's a cultural tradition: "they tried to kill/make us irrelevant. They failed. Let's eat." Or, conversely, "we don't know when the Tsar's men will come and we'll need to pack up and leave. Eat something to keep your strength up."


Food isn't just love. It's love of survival.