Poached Arctic Char

Poached Arctic Char on Brown Butter Dressed Micro Greens

Serves:  for 2

Ingredients:

Dressing
2 cups    various micro greens:  young lettuce, herbs, mustards and other greens
½ lb    salted butter
1 tbsp     finely diced shallots
¼ cup     cider vinegar
¼ tsp     Dijon mustard

Salt to taste (which won’t be much if you use salted butter)

Court Bouillon (broth for poaching)

1 or 2L    water
1 stick     Celery
1            medium onion
¼ cup     fresh fennel

salt to season to a soup consistency

3            bay leaves
½ tsp     roughly crushed black peppercorns
2 X 3 or 4 ounce pieces of boneless Arctic Char (Speckled or Rainbow Trout work very well, too)

Instructions:

Dressing:  Place the chopped shallots in a small stainless bowl and begin to melt the butter in a medium sauce pan.   The butter will become liquid, then bubble up, fall and become quiet and then it will begin to foam again as the solids will begin to colour and give off a beautiful nutty smell.  As soon as the foam begins to fall again and you see it become more and more brown remove from the heat and, through a fine strainer, pour the hot butter slowly into the shallots.  The heat of the butter will cause the water in the shallots to instantly boil – go slowly so it doesn’t boil.  Then add the vinegar, the mustard and check the seasoning – it may take a bit more salt or it may need more vinegar – balance to your palates delight.
Fish:  In a large round, shallow pan, combine the ingredient to make the Court Bouillon and bring to a soft boil.  Season to taste as you would a soup.   Gently slide the 2 portions fish into the simmering water and allow to slowly cook for about 3 minutes – more if you wish to hard cook it through and through but this is not necessary not recommended.

Serve:  Tumble a ball of greens in the centre of 2 plates, place the freshly poached fish into the centre of the greens like a nest and drizzle the whole thing with the dressing.

Bon appétit!

courtesy by Brad Long