Halibut Confit With Leeks Coriander And Lemon Food

HALIBUT CONFIT WITH LEEKS, CORIANDER, AND LEMON

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 375°F. Coarsely grind 1 tablespoon coriander seeds in a spice mill or with a mortar and pestle. (Alternatively, you can coarsely chop with a knife.)
• Toss leeks, cilantro sprigs, oil, half of lemon slices, and 2 teaspoons ground coriander in a large roasting pan; season with salt. Roast, tossing occasionally, until leeks are tender and starting to brown, 15-20 minutes. Remove roasting pan from oven and carefully pour infused oil into a large heatproof measuring cup.
• Reduce oven temperature to 275°F. Season halibut with salt and arrange over leeks in roasting pan. Top with remaining lemon slices and ground coriander and pour infused oil over fish. Roast until halibut is just cooked through and starting to flake, 30-35 minutes.
• Cut halibut into large pieces and serve with leeks and lemon topped with chopped coriander seeds and cilantro leaves.
• Do ahead: Halibut can be roasted 1 hour ahead. Let cool and cover.

CORIANDER-CRUSTED HALIBUT WITH RICE NOODLES AND GINGER BROTH

Steps:

• For the Coriander Crusted Halibut With Rice Noodles And Ginger Broth: Preheat an oven to 450 degrees. Place the coriander on a small plate. Season the halibut on both sides with salt and dredge the top only with the coriander. In a hot saute pan coated with oil, sear the top first until brown and fragrant. Flip and place pan in oven for 8 to10 minutes or until the fish in flaky and hot in the middle. Concurrently, in a hot saucepan, coat lightly with oil and saute the ginger and leeks until soft, about 4 minutes. Deglaze with fish sauce and add stock. Bring to a simmer and reduce by 20 percent. Check for seasoning then add lime juice and cilantro. Right before serving, add the soft rice noodles. Bring to temperature then serve.
• PLATING In large, warm pasta bowls, ladle the broth, leeks and noodles. Make a small pile in the middle with the mixture and top with halibut. Garnish with cilantro sprigs.
• Wine Suggestion: Lenswood Sauvignon Blanc, Australia

HALIBUT FILLETS WITH LEEKS

Steps:

• Before chopping, rinse thoroughly between the leek leaves and pat dry. Chop the leeks as finely as possible. There should be about 3 1/2 cups.
• Heat 1 tablespoon of the butter in a saucepan and add the leeks. Cook, stirring often from the bottom, about 3 minutes. Add the 2/3 cup of wine and stir. Bring to the boil and cover. Cook 10 minutes. Keep warm.
• Meanwhile, using the remaining 1 tablespoon of butter, grease the bottom of a heavy skillet large enough to hold the fish pieces in one layer without crowding. Sprinkle the bottom of the skillet with shallots and arrange the fish pieces over it. Sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste. Pour the remaining 1/2 cup of wine over the fish. Bring the wine to a boil and cover the skillet closely. Cook 4 minutes or less until the fish just loses its raw look.
• Transfer the fish pieces to a warm serving platter. Cover closely with foil and keep warm.
• Cook down briefly the skillet liquid to 1/2 cup and then pour it into a saucepan. Add the cream. Bring to a boil and cook over moderately high heat about 4 minutes or until reduced to 3/4 cup. Set aside 6 tablespoons of this sauce to be added to the linguine, which will accompany this dish.
• Spoon four equal portions of the cooked leeks onto four individual serving dishes. Top each portion of the leeks with one piece of fish. Spoon all but the reserved 6 tablespoons of sauce over the fish. If serving with linguine, toss pasta with the reserved sauce and 2 tablespoons butter. Serve alongside the fish.

CONFIT LEEKS WITH LENTILS, LEMON AND CREAM

Steps:

• Heat oven to 180 degrees Celsius/350 degrees Fahrenheit.
• If necessary, soak and carefully rinse the leek rounds in a large bowl of water to get rid of any excess grit. Drain, then cautiously pat dry, keeping the rounds intact.
• Add the leeks, garlic, thyme, 1 teaspoon salt and a good grind of pepper to a 12-by-8-inch/30-by-20-centimeter baking dish. Mix gently to combine, then pour the oil on top. Arrange the leeks cut-side up, then cover tightly with foil and bake for 35 minutes.
• Remove the baking dish from the oven and gently turn the leeks using two forks. Cover again with foil and return to the oven to bake until completely softened, about 35 minutes more. Turn the oven temperature up to 200 degrees Celsius/400 degrees Fahrenheit.
• As the leeks bake, fill a medium saucepan about two-thirds of the way with water and bring to a boil over high. Add the lentils and cook until just tender but not at all mushy, 12 to 15 minutes. Drain well and set aside.
• When ready, remove the confit leeks from the oven and transfer a heaping 1/2 cup/100 grams of the cooked leeks plus 5 of the garlic cloves to a bowl for the leek cream. Add the cooked lentils to the remaining leeks in the baking dish along with 1/4 teaspoon salt and a good grind of pepper; mix gently to combine. Cover again with the foil and return to the oven for 15 minutes. Remove the foil and leave to settle for 10 minutes. Discard the thyme sprigs.
• While the lentils bake with the leeks, make the cream: Add reserved leeks and garlic to a food processor along with the heavy cream, mustard, 1 tablespoon lemon juice and 1/8 teaspoon of salt; blitz until smooth.
• When ready, stir the remaining 4 tablespoons lemon juice and the chopped herbs into the lentil and leek mixture. Transfer to a rimmed platter and serve with the leek cream in a bowl alongside.