I bought chef Gabrielle Kreuther’s book pretty much sight unseen from Half-Price Books recently. Half-Price Books stores are a favorite of mine, a fun place to spend some time, browse and buy a few books for a discount. These are usually used but sometimes, as in this case, you find shrink wrapped brand new books.
Impatient? Skip to the recipe.
Anyways, all I knew is that chef Kreuther is a very well respected chef with an excellent fine dining restaurant in New York City where he serves refined food based on his Alsatian heritage. When I started browsing through the book I knew this was a keeper. It’s excellent, well-written, the recipes are inspiring and the photos are gorgeous. I should not have been surprised I guess since Michael Ruhlman is the co-author (same as with the Thomas Keller books).
The book is divided into two sections, the traditional Alsatian recipes (choucroute, Alsatian onion tart,…) and the modern fine dining recipes that are served at the chef’s Michelin starred NYC restaurant, Gabrielle Kreuther Restaurant. This recipe is from the fine dining section, but it is pretty easy to prepare and does not have a lot of complex technique. I also happened to have very good quality sablefish in the freezer that I had ordered online. Black cod or butter fish is another name for it, the preferred fish for that classic Nobu dish, Miso Black Cod.
The fish is cooked very gently in the oven. I used my Combustion predictive thermometer to precisely 127 F. Cooking it sous vide would be a good option here too (25 – 30 minutes at 130F). Before cooking it, like almost all seafood, I brined it for 15 minutes in a 10% salt brine. This is optional but I highly recommend it for a better texture and even seasoning throughout the fish.
A small sharp salad is served with the fish made from green apples, fresh coconut and green onions. I did buy what I thought was a mature fresh coconut but it ended up being more of a “young” coconut with a softer flesh. It worked well but I can see how the mature crunchy coconut would be a better option.
The starch in the dish is a robust wild rice pilaf cooked with shallots, butter and chicken stock. I think wild rice is often confusing to people. The real stuff is not exactly rice and looks like skinny black twigs almost (see picture below). It’s relatively pricy too. If you buy wild rice “mix” chances are it includes other grains too like brown rice. That is ok, you just might need to adjust the cooking time a bit.
To round it all out we finish the plate with a bright green aromatic basil and mint oil. The flavors and textures are wonderful, the dish looks great and I’m looking forward to trying a few more recipes from this book.
Sablefish with Wild Rice and Green Apple, Coconut Salad
Ingredients
Method
- This can be made several days ahead and keeps very well in the fridge. The recipe makes more than you need for the fish recipe but it is very versatile and I've used it with poached chicken, tuna salad and in salad dressing.
- Combine all ingredients in a blender and blend very well. Put the herb oil in a pan and gently heat it up to 80 C (175 F). This is a key step in setting and preserving the lovely bright green color. Strain it through a fine filter then a coffee filter to make it as clear as possible. It will take a while to go through, maybe 30 minutes at least. Store in a jar in the fridge for up to 2 – 3 weeks.
- In a sauce pan sauté the shallots with the butter until soft. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes or so, you do not want to dry or brown them. Add the wild rice, stir everything for a few minutes and add the stock along with a couple large pinches of salt and some pepper to taste. Bring it to a simmer, cover and cook over very low heat for an hour. Wild rice varieties really differ in cooking times. So, start checking at the 45 minute mark and keep cooking, stirring every now and then until the grains are tender, and little liquid remains. Taste and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper at the end. Keep warm while you finish the rest of the dish.
- Cut the apple in half and make paper thin slices (I used a mandolin for this, but a sharp knife will be fine even if the slices end up a bit thicker). Cut the coconut into similar thin slices. Slice the onion very thinly on a bias. Toss everything together in a bowl, season with salt and adjust by adding more salt or lemon juice to get a fresh tart garnish/salad. This can be prepared while the wild rice is cooking and can sit at room temperature for 30 minutes to an hour.
- Brine the fish (optional but highly recommended) by dissolving the salt in the water and letting the fish soak in the solution for 15 minutes. Rinse the fish and pat dry.
- Heat your oven to 200 F (93 C).
- Rub the fish all over with the oil. Lay them skin side up on a parchment lined sheet pan and bake for 20 to 25 minutes. The fish should be translucent and the skin should come off pretty easily if cooked well. Alternatively use a thermometer to monitor and to cook the fish to about 127 F (up to 130 is fine). Peel off the skin and season with salt (be very careful here if you brined the fish, do not oversalt) and black pepper.
- Plate the dish up by making a bed of the wild rice, place a fish fillet on top. Place a portion of the salad on top or next to the fish and drizzle the plate with the basil-mint oil.
