Halibut Crudo Recipes

HALIBUT CRUDO WITH SHAVED RADISHES, FRIED CAPERS, AND CHIVE OIL

Steps:

• For the chive oil: Put the chives and olive oil in a blender and puree until smooth. Transfer to a small bowl.
• With a sharp knife, cut the halibut fillet into broad, paper-thin slices, as if slicing smoked salmon. As you work, arrange the slices, slightly overlapping, on 8 chilled salad plates. You should be able to make about 32 slices, or 4 per portion. Drizzle the fish with Meyer lemon juice, using about 1 teaspoon per portion, then sprinkle with fleur de sel. Put a clump of shaved radish on the center of each portion, then drizzle chive oil around (not over) the fish, using about 2 teaspoons per portion.
• In a small saucepan, heat about 1 inch of vegetable oil to 360°F. To test whether the oil is hot enough, add a couple of capers; they should sizzle on contact. Add all the capers and cook, stirring with a wire-mesh skimmer, until they stop sizzling fiercely, about 20 seconds. Transfer to paper towels with the skimmer. The buds should have opened slightly, and they should be crisp. Scatter over the fish and serve immediately.
• Enjoy with Cakebread Cellars Sauvignon Blanc or another brisk, refreshing white wine.

HALIBUT CRUDO

Steps:

• For the mango salsa: Slice the dashi kombu and shiso leaves as thinly as possible. Dice the mango into small cubes. Toss the dashi kombu, shiso leaves and mango together on a cutting board and chop as finely as possible to combine. Set aside.
• For the halibut crudo: Sprinkle the halibut with sea salt, wrap in the dashi kombu and refrigerate for 30 minutes to marinate.
• Slice the halibut into 5 thin pieces the size of sushi nigiri (about 2 inches long and less than 1/2 inch thick). Place 5 dots of ponzu sauce (about 1 teaspoon each) on a plate. Roll the halibut slices and stand them on their side on the dots of ponzu. Add 2 drops of the white truffle oil and about 1/2 teaspoon mango salsa to each piece of halibut. Then add a small dollop (1/2 teaspoon or less) of the wasabi tobiko and an even smaller dollop of the black caviar to each piece of halibut. Serve.