Halibut 3 Ways!

by Ryan Hayter, Marigold Café | photo by Janis Jean Photography – 

It’s that time of year again: halibut lovers rejoice! Fresh halibut is readily available at your local grocery store, and I have some unique recipes for you to enjoy. These recipes were designed to utilize all of the halibut you purchase: trim and all! Reserve the nice fillets for the entrée, thin and/or tail sections will be used for the cakes, and all the rest will become your ceviche.

Ceviche is a bright and fresh Latin-American appetizer that uses lime juice to lightly “cook” the halibut. Crab and halibut cakes are always a favourite; it’s impossible to resist the crunchy exterior and zesty tartar sauce. Prosciutto adds a crisp and salty element that elevates the halibut fillets, and the champagne soy cream knocks this dish out of the park.

These simple yet elegant dishes will wow your taste buds, and impress anyone you choose to share them with.

Prosciutto Wrapped Halibut – Seasonal Vegetables – Champagne Soy Cream
6 servings

Champagne Soy Cream:
 1 tsp sesame oil
½ shallot, peeled, roughly chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled, roughly chopped
½ thumb-sized piece ginger, peeled, roughly chopped
200 ml champagne
1½ tbsp white vinegar
1 cup heavy cream
2 tbsp light soy sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
½ tsp canola oil
1 tsp butter

Method:

1. Add sesame oil and canola oil to a small saucepan and put over medium heat.
2. Lightly sauté shallot, garlic and ginger.
3. Add vinegar and sugar, bring to a simmer.
4. Add champagne, reduce mixture by ¾’s
5. Add soy sauce and cream, reduce mixture until sauce coats the back of a spoon.
6. Remove from heat and stir in butter.
7. Strain mixture through fine mesh strainer into a clean container.
8. Cool to room temperature, then refrigerate with airtight lid.

Prosciutto Wrapped Halibut:
6 x 6oz piece of fresh halibut (skinned and trimmed), approx. 1.5” thick pieces.
6 pieces thinly sliced prosciutto
seasonal vegetables cooked to your liking (I used beet, potato, snap pea, heirloom tomato and rapini)

Method:

1. Wrap each piece of halibut with one piece of prosciutto.
2. In a large saucepan, add enough oil to thinly cover the bottom of the pan, and heat for 2 minutes over med/high heat.
3. Add prosciutto-wrapped halibut to pan, spaced evenly.
4. Sear for 4 minutes untouched.
5. Using fish spatula, flip halibut and sear approx. 4 more minutes.

Serve with your choice of seasonal vegetables and a drizzling of warmed champagne-soy cream.

Ceviche:
6 servings

¼ cucumber, diced
¼ jalapeno, seeded and diced
¼ red bell pepper, seeded and diced
¼ bunch cilantro, finely chopped
4 cherry tomatoes, quartered
2 tbsp finely chopped red onion
2 limes, juiced
8oz fresh halibut, diced
1/8 tsp cumin
½ avocado, peeled and diced
1 tsp olive oil
½ tbsp honey
salt to taste

Method:

1. Mix raw diced halibut with fresh lime juice in a glass bowl, cover and let sit refrigerated for 1 hour.
2. Mix honey with red onion, cumin, olive oil. Add cherry tomatoes, cilantro, bell pepper, cucumber and jalapeno.
3. Add halibut mixture to vegetable mixture and lightly mix. Add salt to taste.
4. Add avocado and lightly mix just before serving.
5. Garnish with lime and cilantro.
6. Serve with corn or vegetable chips of your choice.

Halibut & Crab Cakes – Pickled Vegetable – Creole Tartar Sauce
8 servings

Pickled Vegetables:

Pickling liquid:
2 garlic cloves, peeled and split in half
½ tsp pickling spice
1 tbsp white sugar
½ tbsp kosher salt
½ cup pure white vinegar
½ tsp dry dill
½ cup water

Method:

Combine all ingredients in a small sauce-pan and bring to a simmer. Let simmer 3 minutes and remove from heat

Vegetables for Pickling:
½ jalapeno, thinly sliced (remove seeds for a less spicy pickle)
½ small carrot, peeled, then use peeler to make nice ribbons with the carrot
¼ red onion, thinly sliced
4 large spears asparagus, split in half lengthwise
¼ cucumber, thinly sliced

Method:

1. Add all vegetables to be pickled into the warm pickling liquid and return to heat. Bring up to a mild simmer while stirring occasionally, then remove from heat.
2. Once the vegetables and liquid have cooled slightly, transfer to a clean container for storage.
3. Only put a lid on your container after the pickles and liquid have cooled to room temperature.
4. Store with airtight lid in the refrigerator (pickles will last at least a month).

 Creole Tartar Sauce:

 ½ cup mayonnaise
3 tbsp sweet green relish
1 tbsp capers, drained and finely chopped
1/8 tsp dry dill
¼ shallot, peeled and minced
½ lemon, juiced
1 tsp Cajun spice (blackening spice). Can be found in any grocery store; most are very similar and described as a spice or rub.

Method:

1. Mix all ingredients in a clean mixing bowl.
2. Store in a clean airtight container in the fridge (this mixture has about a two-week shelf life).

 Halibut & Crab Cakes:
Yield: 8 x 2oz cakes OR 16 x 1oz cakes. For a plated dinner I like the larger ones, but for an appetizer party the small ones are perfect.

 ½ cup diced, cooked halibut
¼ red bell pepper, seeded & finely diced
2 tbsp red onion, finely diced
3 sprigs parsley, leaves removed & finely diced
1 rib celery, finely diced
1 tbsp mayonnaise
1½ tbsp smooth Dijon mustard
2 large eggs
¼ tsp salt
pinch ground black pepper
¾ cup panko bread crumbs, divided
½ lb crabmeat
½ cup flour
1/3 cup milk
chopped green onion for garnish

Method:
Cake Mix:

1. Pan-sear the diced halibut in a small frying pan using 1 tsp. vegetable oil. Once Halibut is lightly cooked set aside.
2. Place celery, red pepper, red onion and parsley in a medium mixing bowl.
3. Add mayo, mustard, 1 egg, salt, pepper to the vegetable mix and combine lightly.
4. Add ¼ cup panko breadcrumbs to mix.
5. Squeeze as much liquid as you can from crabmeat, then add to the vegetable/breadcrumb mix.
6. Break the cooked halibut into smaller flakes and add to the mixture. Mix well.
7. If you are comfortable with the raw eggs, you can taste the mix at this point to see if it needs any salt or extra mustard.
8. Store this mix in the fridge until you are ready to form and bread the cakes.

Cake Assembly:
Three-step breading method: flour – egg wash – breadcrumbs.

1. Portion the mix into desired portions (I recommend either 1oz or 2oz cakes). Shape your cakes as uniformly as you can into shapes that look a bit like hockey pucks.
2. Make egg-wash: mix 1 egg with 1/3 cup of milk.
3. Set up three small bowls in a row: place ½ cup flour in the first, your egg-wash in the second, and ½ cup panko breadcrumbs in the third bowl.
4. Bread the cakes one at a time by gently rolling in the flour until all surfaces are coated; shake off as much extra flour as possible.
5. Next, place the cake into the egg wash and completely coat the cake; shake as much extra egg wash from cake.
6. Now, gently toss the cake in panko until completely coated.
7. Continue method until all cakes are breaded.
8. Store in the fridge until you are ready to pan sear. Cakes are best breaded just before searing but you can bread them up to 2 hours before cooking.
9. Preheat oven to 375°
10. Place large oven-safe frying pan on the stove at medium heat with enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan.
11. Once pan has heated, add the cakes and sear each side until golden brown.
12. Place pan in the oven and bake 8-10 minutes or until the cakes have reached 160°

Serve hot, with the creole tartar and pickled vegetables on the side, and thinly sliced green onions as a garnish.