Ingredients
Seared Arctic Char:
1 7 oz Arctic Char Filet (skin on, pin bones removed)
1 oz Olive Oil Blend for searing the fish
2 oz Carrot-Pernod Jam (recipe to follow)
1 cup Balsamic Beets (recipe to follow)
1 tbsp Mustard and Fennel Seed Dust
½ cup Organic Greens Medley
1 oz EVOO (Extra Virgin Olive Oil)
1 Fresh Lemon, juice of
tt Kosher Salt and Ground Black Pepper
Carrot Jam:
4 cups Carrots, peeled, diced large and boiled in water with a little chili pepper until completely soft
Drain but reserve the liquid for adjusting the purée
2 oz Whole unsalted butter (room temperature)
2 oz Light Brown sugar
1 tbs Preserved (Pickled Lemon, recipe to follow, make in advance)
1 tsp Pernod ( can substitute Anisette) but I like Pernod
Spicy Lemon Pickle:
5 Lemons ( nip tip & ¼ )
1 tbsp Kosher salt
1 tbsp Granulated Sugar
4 Red Thai Chili Peppers
¼ cup Granulated Sugar
Method of Preparation
Arctic Char:
Pre-heat oven to 375 degrees. Depending on the thickness of the fish, you might want to finish the cooking in the oven while you set up the plate presentation. Prepare in advance; Carrot Jam, Boil and peel the beets, reserve both for service. Make the Balsamic Vinegar Syrup (reduction), simply heat but do not boil very hard 1 cup of vinegar until reduced by two thirds (this can be done well in advance and kept in your pantry.)
Toast and grind equal amounts mustard seed and fennel seed, simply heat in a sauté pan until aromatized. Cool completely and place in a coffee grinder (I keep one for spices and one for coffee in my kitchen) make a dust.
Cut and mix the Organic Greens; Frisée, Raddichio, Italian Parsley, Fresh Tarragon, wash, drain and refrigerate for service. Sear the flesh side of the Char, turn when lightly brown to skin side down, dust the flesh with the spice mixture and salt and pepper. Medium-high heat (stay in control) hint: oven. Cut and mix beets with syrup, season with salt and pepper. Arrange, jam, beets, greens and fish.
Carrot Jam:
Using a blender; add some of the cooking liquid from the carrots first, this will help it grab and smooth out better. Add the Carrots (leave the chili pepper in there.) Make it very smooth but let it be thick like baby food. Add the butter and the light brown sugar. Add the lemon pickle and a slash to taste of the Pernod, adjust taste and consistency that it is not too thin. Reserve this Jam for final plating.
Spicy Lemon Pickle:
Combine all ingredients ( except for the *1/4 cup sugar for final processing ) in a 1 quart Mason jar. Shake the jar vigorously and let stand at room temperature ( do not refrigerate ) Let rest for 4 days and shake the jar a couple of times a day. After 4 days, remove the lemon quarters, reserve any juice.
Pick out the chili peppers using gloves and trim off the stem and cut the peppers into pieces. Trim the lemon from the rind and using a knife, roughly chop the rind. Place the rind and the chili peppers into a food processor. Press all the lemon pulp through a strainer and reserve with the other juice from the initial process.
Blend the rind and the juice in the food processor until it starts to smooth out, add the reserved sugar and taste. You may need more sugar to balance the tart, sweet and spicy flavors. Store in small mason type jelly jars in the refrigerator.