Kiss My Halibut



I have been told by so many fish mongers that halibut is not in season right now. In a few weeks, in a few weeks. What's the deal with that?
I have been to every fish market and Whole Foods and they all say the same thing.

What do I have to do to get a good, firm piece of halibut around here.
Kiss some butt?

I did something that I have never done before. I bought 2 frozen halibut filets at Trader Joe's. I have never purchased frozen seafood before, except for shrimp. Fish should be fresh, not frozen! I was desperate, and the cryo package said PRODUCT OF USA. What the hell, I did it. Please don't judge me.

Well, let me tell you......after thawing the steaks and taking out the cartilage, and removing the skin, these steaks were actually good looking. You'd never know they were previously frozen, no odor, nice firm white fish.

Here is my favorite way to prepare halibut.

Roasted Halibut over Polenta: this is my own concoction, and you don't have to do the polenta, it just looked nice (tasty too!).

2 halibut steaks
handful of cherry tomatoes
1/4 cup of fresh, chopped basil
1 clove garlic, minced
a tbsp of capers, and tbsp of caper juice
2 tbsp of lemon juice
a few tbsp of olive oil
about 8 kalamata olives, chopped
kosher salt & pepper for the fish


Rub your halibut steaks (trimmed of skin and cartilage) with olive oil & place on a baking sheet.
Sprinkle liberally w/ kosher salt and pepper.

Now for the sauce. Can be made hours ahead.



Cut your cherry tomatoes into quarters and put in a bowl.
To the bowl add your garlic, basil, lemon juice, capers and juice, olive oil & olives. Mix this together and leave on the counter at room temperature for at least an hour.



Roast your fish at 425 for about 12 minutes (depending on thickness). Remove from oven and spoon tomato basil sauce on top.

To make your polenta discs: Make polenta as per package directions. When polenta is thick, spoon into a glass pie dish and refrigerate for 2 hours until firm.



I cut my circles out with a biscuit cutter and then fried in a non stick skillet with some oil until crispy on the outside.
Serve your fish over the polenta discs.

This is a restaurant quality dinner (especially when you have good, fresh halibut) and takes no time to put together.



Comments

Well the fish looks good to me! If it's convenient and doesn't mean taking a number and waiting for like forever for someone behind the counter to help you at WF, then I'd call it a winner.
Looks very good to me. I will say that I save the frozen fish for our fish fry. Polenta is nice looking too.
helluva halibut...plus I really like polenta this way...
Wow, I made a really similar sauce for sole the other day. I LOVE Trader Joe's fish. Not fishy at all and nice that you can keep in the freezer. I am going there today.
kat said…
Fish have season too so its good that the frozen stuff is just as good so you have a back up just like veggies
Ciao Chow Linda said…
I'd kiss that halibut any day. It looks great. Wish we had a Trader Joe's near us. Love the polenta cut into disks too.
Catherine said…
Stacey, this looks absolutely delicious! I can't wait to try it. PRONTO.
Anonymous said…
Stacey this looks beautiful. What a pretty dinner.
Anonymous said…
I love halibut. Sounds great with olives and capers!
Foodiewife said…
Diet, Schmiet! This looks lip-smacking good! I've had pretty good luck with TJ's frozen fish, though I prefer fresh when I can get it...sheesh, I live right on the Pacific Ocean! Thanks for the inspiration. This looks really tasty and a lot healthier than what I've been noshing on lately.

Debby
Anonymous said…
Trader Joe's does a good job with their products and sounds like the halibut was excellent. It looks delicious with polenta!
Bob said…
Good to know about TJs frozen fish, thanks! I don't think I've ever had halibut, but I would try this.
Pam said…
I dig Trader Joe's. This is a beautiful and delicious dinner. Love the flavors!
The Food Hunter said…
Looks delicious. Good to know about the quality of Trader Joes fish.
Well I already bought the corn salsa that you suggested, FYI, it's awesome! now I'll be trying the frozen halibut! I love everything about how this dish,it's right up my alley!! Yumm!
Terri said…
This sounds seriously delicious. I can't wait to try it.
Melissa said…
Ohhh thanks for the tip. I want to make a halibut recipe I saw a few weeks ago, this week, but I think I would have been in for disappointment at WF.

Looks great, frozen or no. Heck, it's TJs, so I'm sure it was very tasty!
Juliette said…
Looks great! And frozen fish has to be done sometimes...
Anonymous said…
Kiss my halibut? Seriously, Stacey!
Beth J. said…
Really LoVed this dish...and soooo easy to make. Hubby was quite impressed.
Anonymous said…
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