Fish Wednesday: Not Quite Blackened Black Cod Edition

I get cravings sometimes. Sometimes I think, yes, crispy, blackened, spicy, that’s what I want. Sometimes I think of the once portly Paul Prudhomme and how he seemed to start his recipes with a pound of butter, hence the irresistible deliciousness. Sometimes, I get it in my head that I can replicate the luscious, spicy food of the south here in under the mossy green glow of the Pacific Northwest.

And I fail. Not in an inedible, “Wow, that sucked” sort of way, more in a “Yeah, that was all right but not exactly what I had in mind” kind of way.

There are some cases where it is best to spring for the ready made stuff. A Cajun spice rub is probably one of those – fish sauce and black bean sauce come to mind. I was surprised to find I had most of what was needed to make a Cajun rub in my kitchen, save powdered onion and powdered garlic, which I never have. The resulting rub came out nice enough, but I probably should have cooked the fish on a blazing hot and well oiled grill rather than in the skillet in a hot oven. Or fried them on the stove top in a half a pound of butter.

As a side I’d cooked up a big batch of collard greens. For the first time I bothered to boil the greens for a sufficient amount of time in a big pot of water – wow, did that make all the difference! I tend to flash fry my greens or steam them barely at all, but collards are tough if you don’t cook them properly. In a rare instance of memory of collard green failures in the past, I remembered to start the greens good and early, and then I sauteed them with onions, Tabasco, and some tomatoes. What a difference it makes to cook the collard properly. Good stuff.

The fish was cooked perfectly, but it didn’t have the crunch I was looking for. I’m not big on pan frying, not unless it’s in someone else’s kitchen, but this fish was worse for being treated as though it was a healthy meal and not an artery clogging adventure. Next time, I’m springing for the Cajun spice mix and firing up the grill.

Because you know I care, I’ll tell you that Black Cod, also known as Sablefish, is a okay choice according to our friends at Seafood Watch. It’s best if the fish is from Alaska or BC, so see if your fish monger can tell you where, exactly, the fish is caught. It’s a mild, white, flaky fish. It’s probably a nice stew fish, but it’s firm enough to hold up to grilling.

Eat your fish, it helps you learn from your past.