The Literate Chef

Posts Tagged ‘tarragon’

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Pan-Seared Black Sea Bass

In Fish, Recipes, Seafood on May 22, 2012 at 8:10 PM

Pan-Seared Black Sea Bass

(Preparation and active cooking time 45 minutes – Serves 2)

Ingredients:

½ cup of canned creamed corn
½ cup of coconut milk
½ cup of clam juice
2 tsp. fresh minced ginger, 1 piece about 1inch by ½ inch, peeled
¼ tsp. curry powder
6 large shrimp, cleaned & de-veined
¾ lb. fillet of Black Sea Bass
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh tarragon
1 Tbsp. chopped fresh chives
1 & 1/2 Tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Kosher Salt

Preparation:

1.    Pre-heat oven to 400 degrees.
2.    Remove fish and shrimp from refrigerator and bring to room temperature.
3.    While the oven is heating, mince the ginger, chop the tarragon and chives and clean & de-vein the shrimp. Also measure out all of the other ingredients and set aside.
4.    When the oven is heated, place the corn on a baking sheet and roast for 15 minutes.
5.    In the meantime, add the coconut milk and clam juice to a small 1 or 2 quart pot and slowly bring to a boil on medium-low heat. Add the minced ginger and the curry powder.
6.    When the corn is done, puree it and whisk it into the broth.
7.    Add the shrimp and let cook slowly until pink, keep warm on very low heat.
8.    Add most of the chopped tarragon and chives to the broth, reserving a little for garnish.
9.    Season both sides of the fish with Kosher Salt.
10.    Heat a heavy stainless steel sauté pan on high, add olive oil to the pan and heat on high until it shimmers.
11.    Slowly add the fish fillets, skin side down. The fish will buckle up, so push it down for a few seconds to keep it flat. Cook for 2 minutes and turn.
12.    Continue cooking for 4 more minutes, shutting the heat for the last minute. Note
13.    While the fish is cooking in step 12, spoon the shrimps and broth into bowls.
14.    Add the fish fillets when done, skin side down and sprinkle the remaining tarragon and chives over them.
15.    Serve immediately with hot, crispy French bread to soak up the broth.

Note: This cooking time is predicated on using Black Sea Bass, which is about ½ to ¾ of an inch thick. If using Striped Bass or any thicker fish, increase the cooking time accordingly.

Please see On Tour With The Literate Chef-Bermuda, Part II

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Roasted Chicken with Tarragon and Lemon Zest

In Chicken, Meat, Recipes on October 31, 2011 at 6:56 AM

Serves 4

Ingredients:

1 Bell & Evans roasting chicken, about 7 lbs.
4 tbsps. unsalted butter, softened at room temperature
1 tbsp. chopped fresh tarragon leaves
1 lemon
Kosher Salt & Freshly Ground Black pepper
1 cup dry white wine

Preparation:

1.    Pre-heat oven to 325 degrees.
2.    Zest the lemon to obtain about 2 tablespoons of zest. Retain the lemon for step 6.
3.    Using a fork, blend the chopped tarragon and lemon zest into the softened butter.
4.    Starting above the cavity, gently slip one or two fingers between the skin and the meat of the chicken’s breast to lift the skin and create a pocket.
5.    Take ½ the butter mixture and gently slip it into the pocket on one side of the breast bone, then do the same on the other side, spread the butter mixture by smoothing over the skin.
6.    Slice the lemon in half and place it in the chicken cavity.
7.    Generously salt and pepper the chicken skin.
8.    Place it on a roasting rack in a roasting pan and roast for 25 minutes per pound (about 3 hours for a 7 pound chicken).
9.    About 90 minutes into the roasting, baste the chicken with the juices that have collected in the pan, pour the wine over the chicken and continue roasting for 30 minutes.
10.    Baste the chicken, raise the oven temperature to 375 degrees and continue roasting for 1 hour.
11.    Check the internal temperature with a meat thermometer inserted in the thickest part of the thigh, if it reads 175 degrees or more it is done.
12.    Remove the roasting pan from the oven, place the chicken on a platter and cover with foil, let it sit for 15 to 20 minutes.
13.    Place the roasting pan on a stove top burner. Make a gravy by pouring the drippings from the roasting pan into a fat separator. Let the fat rise to the top, pour the drippings back into the pan, heat to a boil on low, whisk in several tablespoons of flour to thicken the gravy to your desired consistency. If too thick, add more wine and boil off the alcohol.

Serve with Roasted Herbed Vegetables and Roasted Fingerling Potatoes

The vegetables and potatoes can both be cooked at the same, during the last hour that the chicken is roasting at 375 degrees, and the prep can be done while the chicken is in the early roasting stage.

Arneis, a crisp, flavorful, Piemontese white wine from the Roero goes great with this dish, as its hints of lemon are in perfect harmony with the flavors of the chicken.

Please see: Sunday Chicken Dinner – No Leftovers!

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