The frugal side of me abhors waste and as I so often do, I saved the tasty braising liquid from my recent artichoke dish to use in a different dish, in a different way. The extravagant side of me blew invested that savings into a luscious and yes, expensive, dish. But get this: I found stunning FRESH PORCINI MUSHROOMS. In January. In New York. Bliss!! I have lamented before that no matter what they say, dried porcini mushrooms do not compare to fresh. So, imagine my glee and wildness upon seeing the gorgeous funghi. And then I went to my fish monger and it got worse, um, I mean better. He had incredibly fresh sea trout from Tasmania. Yes, flown halfway around world, across the International Date Line. Silly, but true: I scrimped in one way but giddily threw money at the grocer and fish monger to create a meal that just doesn't come along every day. I wanted to celebrate the joy of fresh porcini and Tazzy Trout with wild decadence. Here's my oh-so-scrumptious-completely-worth-every-penny "Tasmanian Sea Trout with Fresh Porcini Cream Sauce".
I justify my actions to my frugal side with "At least I rode a good wave a little further" and "The meal was equally as good as what one can find in many restaurants and while expensive for home cooking, it was still a bargain, compared to menu prices in this city". The fish, though it looks like salmon, definitely tastes like trout. It's delicate and not nearly so overwhelming as salmon.
Here's how I did it:
Ingredients
Serves 2
2 Tasmanian Sea Trout fillets (a great substitute would be Arctic Char)
1 1/2 c. poaching liquid (water, olive oil, lemon, aromatics, herbs)
2 fresh green bay leaves
2.5 oz. fresh porcini mushrooms, chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
1 shallot diced
2 T. extra virgin olive oil
sea salt to taste
freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 c. fresh or frozen green peas
1 oz. ripened goat cheese or any good soft cheese that melts well
2 T. more poaching liquid
Method:
1) If you still have the bay leaves in your poaching liquid from prior use, make sure to remove it. Pour the liquid into a large skillet or saucepan that comfortably accommodates the fillets without crowding. The liquid should be at least 3/4" deep. If you don't have enough, add vegetable or fish stock or white wine. Put the two fresh green bay leaves into the liquid. Bring the liquid up to a gentle simmer.
2) Heat a skillet on medium-high heat and add the extra virgin olive oil. When shimmering, put in the mushrooms, and shallot. Sauté until the mushrooms are a deep golden brown color and give off a hearty, perfumed earthy scent. Add the garlic and stir.
3) Add the fish fillets to the first pan with the simmering poaching liquid, skin-side up. Cook fish for 8 minutes per inch of thickness. To check for doneness, separate the flakes with a fork. Fish is done if the flakes separate without much resistance.
4) In the mushroom pan, add the peas and sauté until they are just tender. Make a space in the center and add the cheese, melting in the middle of the pan. Gently fold the mushrooms into the cheese as it melts. Add about 2 T. of the braising liquid from the fish into the mushrooms and cheese and gently stir to mix in. Add the heavy cream and stir until the sauce is thick, smooth and velvety. Remove the mushrooms from the heat.
5) At this point, the fish should be done. Remove the fish gently with a spatula and plate. Spoon the mushrooms sauce over the fish and serve immediately.
6) Taste. Swoon. Moan. Repeat.
You and the Ideas In Food blog shop at the same grocer! They had Tasmanian Sea Trout on their blog today too!
N.
Posted by: Nicole | January 26, 2007 at 08:00 AM
Mmmmmm, that sounds so darn good, my stomach is seriously growling very loudly over here! Mm, yumm! I've never poached fish (because it ah, sounds hard? I bake or fry mostly... mmm.)but that sounds really delectable. Hehehe... cheese + fish is a secret pleasure of mine ;)
Posted by: Yvo | January 26, 2007 at 09:33 AM
N, it's definitely a small food-blogging world. The fish must be good these days!
Yvo, it was very, very good. I wouldn't say I'm in the habit of combining fish with cheese but you're right it was a real pleasure. Poaching fish is so easy and the result is so incredibly tender, moist and full of flavor (if you add aromatics and acid to it) you really should try it. It's far tastier than baked, unless you're baking en papillote. It doesn't get dry in the least!
Posted by: Stephanie Beack | January 26, 2007 at 11:27 AM
I think that's why I was scared off- poaching makes it sound so... bland and boring! But clearly, I'd just never considered the possibility of poaching with aromatics/herbs/acid to enhance the flavor even further, yum! Hm, would that still be poaching? When is it considered braising? Never mind, whatever, poach is a delicate word, and fish is delicate, so it works.
I came back because I forgot to mention I loved that last step. I just want to skip to that one ;)
This is definitely going to sound weird, but my original thought was "I didn't think most people did fish+cheese" then I thought of those nasty (well, now, but back then, yum!) school lunch fish filets with the slice of American cheese baked/fried into them/under the skin? But really, my secret pleasure is from this random restaurant on the edge of Chinatown (on Bowery) (that might not be there anymore? though I'd swear I passed by in a cab the other night, though the sign looks a bit different) that serves "American food", one of the dishes being baked grouper with cheese. I couldn't tell you what kind of cheese it is, but the fish is baked over rice in this cream sauce with peas and it's just so darn good... haha. I used to be fanatical about American/"Western" food done Asian/HK style because it's so... good. If you've ever had HK style spaghetti, you'll know what I'm talking about. Sorry, I'm rambling on now. But yes, yummy! I definitely want to try this recipe in some incarnation, and soon!
Posted by: Yvo | January 26, 2007 at 12:07 PM
I always scrimp so I can splurge. And yes, whenever you justify how expensive it is to eat out at a restaurant, a dish at home with expensive ingredients is still a bargain.
Posted by: Homesick Texan | January 26, 2007 at 12:35 PM