Halibut with morels and brown butter sauce plus parsley and garlic pommes purée, and braised lettuce and peas.

Halibut, with its snowy white, non-oily flesh, is a perfect foil for the morel and brown butter sauce.

Recipe by Andrey Durbach, Pied-í -Terre

Ingredients

Brown butter

1 lb (454 g) butter, unsalted

Parsley and garlic pommes purée

4 cups (1 L) milk
1/2 cup (125 mL) olive oil
6 cloves garlic, peeled
4 medium Yukon Gold potatoes, peeled, in 1-inch (2.5-cm) dice
3 Tbsp (45 mL) finely chopped Italian flat-leaf parsley

Lettuce and peas

1 Tbsp (15 mL) butter
3 oz (85 g) smoked bacon, in 1/4-inch (0.5 cm) dice
12 pearl onions, blanched and peeled
1 yellow carrot, blanched, 1/4-inch (0.5 cm) dice
1 orange carrot, blanched, 1/4-inch (0.5 cm) dice
2 small gem lettuces, cut in half
2 sprigs thyme
1/2 cup (125 mL) chicken stock
1/2 cup (125 mL) frozen peas

Halibut

4 fillets halibut, each 6 oz (170 g), cut into 2 escalopes each
Flour for dredging
4 Tbsp (60 mL) olive oil
1 Tbsp (15 mL) butter

Brown butter sauce

1/4 cup (62 mL) + 2/3 cup (167 mL) brown butter, plus extra for garnish
1 lb (454 g) morel mushrooms, halved
1/2 cup (125 mL) fresh lemon juice
1 Tbsp (15 mL) soy sauce
1/2 cup (125 mL) brown veal jus or dark chicken stock (made with roasted bones)

Method

Brown butter

Melt butter in a small, deep, heavy-bottomed pot on low heat. Stir constantly and be careful not to let it burn; wait patiently for about 10 minutes for butter to become a deep rich hazelnut brown. Decant the clear brown butter carefully, leaving behind the dark debris at the bottom of the pot. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve into a clean container and discard solids. Cover and refrigerate. (You will not need all of the brown butter for this recipe, but it will keep refrigerated longer than unsalted butter because the milk solids have been eliminated. Brown butter is delicious on steamed vegetables.)

Parsley and garlic pommes puree

Place milk, oil, and garlic in a large pot on medium heat and bring to a boil. Turn down the heat to low and cook for 10 to 12 minutes, or until garlic is soft. Add potatoes and cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until soft. Drain potatoes and reserve the cooking liquid.

While potatoes are hot, mash them vigorously, then whip in a stand mixer (or with a hand-held beater), adding back enough of the reserved cooking liquid to make the potato mixture soft but not runny. Pass the potato mixture through a fine-mesh sieve for extra smoothness, if desired. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Fold in parsley just before serving.

Lettuce and peas

Preheat the oven to 425 ° F (220 ° C) Melt butter in a wide, shallow ovenproof frying pan on medium-high heat. Add bacon, onions, and yellow and orange carrots, then sauté for 1 minute.

Add lettuces, thyme and stock, then bring to a boil. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and bake in the oven for 15 to 20 minutes, or until carrots are tender.

Return the frying pan to the stovetop on medium heat, add frozen peas and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, or until done. Drain and discard any excess liquid. Remove and discard thyme. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Halibut

Season fish with salt and pepper. Lightly dredge fish in flour, then shake off the excess. Heat oil and butter in a large nonstick frying pan on medium heat, just until butter begins to brown. Add fish and sauté gently for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, or until just done (the fish should be soft to the touch and still slightly opaque in the centre.)

Brown butter sauce

Make this sauce at the last minute. Heat 1/4 cup (62 mL) of the brown butter in a frying pan on medium-high heat. Add morels and sauté for several minutes, or until soft. Stir in lemon juice, soy sauce and veal jus. Bring to a boil, then add the remaining 2/3 cup (167 mL) of the brown butter, and boil again to emulsify. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve

Place pommes purée in the centre of each warmed plate and top with two pieces of fish. Arrange vegetables around the edge, keeping within the rim of the plate. Garnish with a drizzle of brown butter sauce.

Yield: 4 servings

Wine: Nk'Mip Cellars Qwam Qwmt Chardonnay

Adapted from the Chefs’ Table Society of British Columbia’s Vancouver Cooks 2 (Douglas & McIntyre, 2009). Reprinted with permission. All rights reserved.