PAN-SEARED HALIBUT, BRAISED FENNEL & TOMATOES

PAN-SEARED HALIBUT, BRAISED FENNEL & TOMATOES image

Categories Fish

Yield 2 Servings

Number Of Ingredients 24

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Ingredients

4 slices Iberico ham (serrano)
1 lemon, halved
Extra-virgin olive oil
Sprigs of parsley
6 Nicoise olives, seeded, chopped
1 pint mixed cherry tomatoes
6 garlic cloves, peeled
1 hot-house ripe tomato, roughly chopped
Sprig of rosemary
4 white pearl onions, peeled
¼ teaspoon saffron
8 fingerling potatoes
3 bulbs baby fennel
1/8-cup sherry vinegar
2 portions (5 ounces each) center-cut halibut
2 ounces unsalted butter
Salt and pepper to taste
4 yellow cherry tomatoes
2 red cherry tomatoes
1 fennel bulb, thinly sliced
Reserved fennel frawns
Juice of ½ lemon
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Micro basil

Steps:

1) Preheat the oven to 325. Slice ham into 1-inch strips. Place half on a cookie sheet and bake about 5 minutes. Roll the other strips, season with lemon juice, olive oil and parsley. Place the olives in the oven for 6 minutes. Let cool and finely chop. 2) In a saucepan, place cherry tomatoes in 1 cup of olive oil. Add 3 cloves of garlic, salt and pepper and slowly warm tomatoes through, 3 to 4 minutes. Remove skins and reserve pulp. 3) In a saucepan, place tomatoes in 2 cups olive oil. Add remaining garlic, rosemary, slowly warm tomatoes through, about 15 minutes. Let cool, remove tomato, strain and reserve oil. Puree hot-house tomatoes with the juice of 1 lemon and sherry vinegar. Drizzle 1 cup of the olive oil while blending to create emulsion. 4) Slice peeled onions into thirds. Toast saffron in saucepan, about 2 minutes. Add 1 cup of water, salt and pepper. Add the onions, simmer until cooked through, 8 to 12 minutes. 5) In a large saucepan of cold salted water, cook potatoes until fork tender, about 25 minutes. Rinse, dry and slice in half. In a sauté pan, coat the pan with olive oil. When hot, brown potatoes, 4 to 5 minutes. 6) Clean the bulbs, reserve frawns and slice fennel in half. In a sauté pan, coat the bottom with olive oil. When hot, brown the fennel, add ¾ cup water. Cook until tender, about 12 minutes. Let cool, cut into quarters. Mix potatoes with ¼ braised fennel bulbs and reserve. 7) In a large saucepan, coat the pan with olive oil. When the oil is hot, sear the halibut on one side for 4 minutes until golden brown. Remove oil from pan, turn over the halibut and place pan (or on a baking sheet) in the oven until cooked through, 12 to 14 minutes. Remove from the oven and top with 1 tablespoon of butter. 8) Half the tomatoes and mix with fennel and frawns. Dress with lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper. On two plates, spoon tomato confit, halibut on top, add Fennel and Tomato Salad. Top with ham, fennel, onions, olives and herbs.