How I love to have company on Fish Wednesday! If that company happens to be my absent much too long husband, well, welcome home and let’s have a bit of a feast to celebrate, shall we? I asked J. how long it had been since he’d had a home cooked meal – not so long – but it had been a good long time since he’d had fresh seafood.
Salmon season is over, the fish market gal tells me, and soon there will be no more fresh halibut. There’s still frozen salmon to be had but my discerning eye didn’t care for the look of it. Perhaps will be moving on to farmed shellfish for the winter, that and fish from lower latitudes and warmer waters.
First, I roasted one large chopped onion and six purplish potatoes in a hot oven. When they were done, I took the potatoes from the skillet and added the halibut, the juice of one lemon, and a generous tablespoon of capers. That cooked for about 10 minutes until the fish was flaky but not dry. That’s all there was to it. I didn’t even have to pay attention because someone kept asking me, “Hey, do you need to check on the fish?”
The price of the halibut is a bit steep, but oh my god, was it delicious, worth every penny of the 18 dollars a pound price tag. I don’t know what you’d be paying in a restaurant if retail is so high, but this particular bit of halibut was the Chilean sea bass of halibut, I tell you what. Alaskan halibut earns a thumbs up rating for sustainability, good news for the hungry.
In a vaguely related item, today while trying to learn about Hawaiian food, I came across the Hawaiian Seafood Buyer’s Guide. It doesn’t include sustainability ratings, to my disappointment, but there is detailed information about how each fish is caught. I will be chatting about sustainable seafood with the PR rep when we visit the Maui Ocean Center next month. Seafood abundant Hawaii has its own Seafood Watch guide, here – it’s a bummer how short the “good” list is, though I guess it’s not surprising considering how many people pass through there and feast from the sea.
[tags]Fish Wednesday, seafood, halibut[/tags]
Welcome back J! I’m glad there’s good weather for you before you head off to even warmer climes.
welcome back J!
Does Husband really eat with two forks?
@M: You know those wacky Europeans, with their hot water and their two forks.
Mmmmm. Sounds delicious. I love Halibut and sea food in general. We get some very good fish in Portugal too.
I wonder if there are any good international sustainability websites/ search engine for fish/ food so that everyone could check at the same place and choose local fish that is sustainable. Someone needs to set one up if it is not available. Would need a collaborative effort. Thanks for the interesting info.