Monday, April 13, 2009

Sear-Roasted Halibut with Blood Orange Salsa

Halibut with Blood Orange Salsa

Aaand, we're back to the working week. Did you all have a good Easter and/or long weekend? Mine was nice and relaxing with tons of food and the arrival of my "nephew". Our southern themed Easter brunch was fantastic with amazing food and I may have indulged in one too many mint juleps (thanks JenFinn!). The one disappointment of the weekend was that my farmers market was closed yesterday. So annoying. No notice at all!! Anyway, I made this quick recipe for dinner last week so luckily I had something to share with you. Since I got two halibut steaks at the farmers (back when it was open), and I had some blood oranges laying around, this was super easy. I made the salsa the night before so the flavors had plenty of time to come together. It was so delicious and rich without being heavy. Once again, the quick cook of the halibut left me with a fish that was nicely cooked and buttery with a nice sear. I loved the tart and sweet blood orange salsa, which as you can see from the picture, I used liberally on my fish. It was a great combination. If you think you don't like fish, I really encourage you to try halibut because it is one of the least fishy fishes and has a nice flavor and texture. Dishes like these are an excellent and easy preparation that you can make any day of the week.


Sear-Roasted Halibut with Blood Orange Salsa
(Adapted from Fine Cooking)

For the salsa:
3 small blood oranges, cut into segments, with half of the segments juiced
1 tablespoon minced red onion
1 1/2 teaspoons chopped fresh cilantro
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the halibut
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
1 skinless halibut fillets
Olive oil

Position a rack in the center of the oven and heat the oven to 425°F.

Make the salsa:
In a small saucepan, boil the orange juice over medium heat until reduced to 1 tablespoon, let cook

In a medium bowl, combine the reduced orange juice, remaining orange segments, onion, and cilantro. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

Cook the halibut:
In a small bowl, mix the thyme, 1/2 tsp. salt and a pinch of pepper. Rub the mixture all over the halibut. Heat some oil in a 12-inch ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. When the oil is shimmering hot, arrange the fillet in the pan. Sear for about 2 minutes without moving; then use a thin slotted metal spatula to lift a piece of fish and check the color. When the fillets are nicely browned, flip them and put the pan in the oven.

Roast until the halibut is just cooked through, 1 to 2 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven and transfer the halibut to a serving plate. Spoon some of the salsa over the halibut.

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20 comments:

Erica said...

That is so annoying about your famers market!!!! How could they not have given notice?! The first looks great and the salsa sounds super tasty! Great combo.

Christina Kim said...

I am a big fan of sweet fruity things on fish, like mango salsa. This blood orange salsa lends a beauuutiful rich color to the dish, plus lots of flavor! Yum!

Heather said...

that salsa is so bright and colorful. it sounds delicious on the halibut!

Diana said...

I love the idea of blood orange salsa. Especially on halibut -- definitely one of my favorites! :)

Glad you had a nice Easter brunch!

La Cuisine d'Helene said...

Thanks for the recipe, I love Halibut. What a good fish.

Unknown said...

Look at those colors--GORGEOUS!!!

Tyler said...

oh yes!! i've actually just recently discovered that i really like blood oranges. this looks great!!

angela@spinachtiger said...

You cook the way I like to eat. Love the idea of the blood orange salsa, especially since I'm going to be eating a lot of fish in the next few weeks.

Pearl said...

oh my goodness - that is so bright! at first i thought it was a cranberries on some type of pie.. :)

vanillasugarblog said...

Blood orange salsa is good, really good. Never used it on fish though. What a wonderful color in this photo.

Donna-FFW said...

Ive never had blood orange salsa before but it looks heavenly and I cant even imagine how delicious it is..and paired with the halibut, genious!

Reeni said...

What a delicious pairing! Bummer about your farmer's market. I'm happy to hear you had a great brunch, mint juleps, yummmmmm!!

Anonymous said...

Looks really good. That's a great way to utilize fish and other ingredients =)

Kerstin said...

What a gorgeous dish! And so healthy too - it looks delicious!

Esi said...

You guys are all so nice. If you manage to come across some blood oranges, I strongly suggest this recipe. I think the salsa would be great with chips, too!

Sharon said...

Gorgeous photo and color! Your Easter sounded wonderful :)

Darius T. Williams said...

So, I love this idea. I have some salmon at home - I wanna sear it up and season w/cumin and coriander - and I bet a pico de gallo over top would be delicious!

Laura said...

This is one of those great recipes you make over and over because of the simplicity and pure taste. Thanks for the inspiration. I have some blood oranges that need to be used.

Do you shop at the Santa Monica Farmers' market? I used to live there and LOVED to shop there. I remember the mushroom guy, I bought many times from him. Last time I was in LA I bought 5 pounds of the most amazing pistachios I have even had. I still have some in the freezer, I keep them for special desserts.

Esi said...

Sharon, thanks!

Darius, yes, halibut is great with pico de gallo. I did a version last week :)

Laura, I got to the Beverly Hills farmers market because I can walk there, but once in a while I try to check out the Hollywood market. They have all the same vendors, but Hollywood is way bigger. I would love to make it to Santa Monica, but the times aren't convenient for me right now. I LOVE getting pistachios at the farmers market though. I swear they taste better :)

Alicia Foodycat said...

The colour of that salsa is amazing! I would have thought beetroot, not blood orange! Yum.