I don’t usually like cod. I blame all those dry salted cod stands in Spain that I used to walk by when I was studying there. Dry salted cod has to be one of the most offensive smelling things on earth. So anything that triggers this aroma memory makes me gag. Sadly, that goes for fresh cod too. Even fresh, it often has a smell that is just unappetizing to me.
But this piece of cod from Community Seafood was so beautiful and didn’t smell like my nightmares so I decided I would try and break my cod aversion once and for all. I would cook it in a way that would change my own mind about cod. The first thing that came to mind was to cook it in butter. Right?! I’ve poached mushrooms in butter before and I once did octopus poached in olive oil so I figured that might be a great treatment for this cod. Plus I had leftover fancy European butter in my fridge that I was itching to cook with. So I looked up “poaching fish in butter” and I got a bunch of articles and recipes for how to do this. I followed the instructions but mostly my instincts and came out with the yummiest piece of cod I have ever eaten. It was tender, flaky and perfectly done. It had the smell and flavor of butter and olive oil but was not greasy or heavy at all. The only drawback is that I had to throw out all that used oil and butter at the end. But it was a small price to pay for breaking my cod aversion.
Delightful Recipe
Serves 4
INGREDIENTS
- 1 big piece of ling cod with skin (about a pound)
- 1/2 stick of butter
- 1 sprig of rosemary
- 2 cloves of garlic smashed with the flat edge of a knife
- Olive Oil
- Salt & Pepper
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees
- In a non-stick pan over high, heat 1 TBS of olive oil until it shimmers.
- Sprinkle cod on both sides with coarse salt.
- Place cod skin side down into skillet and let it cook until the skin is crispy and brown.
- Meanwhile put butter in an oven-proof skillet over medium heat with the rosemary and smashed garlic cloves.
- When the butter is fully melted add olive oil until it becomes about 1 1/2 inches deep.
- Let butter, oil, garlic and rosemary cook over medium heat until the garlic is a light golden brown. Adjust the heat down if it starts to fry, you don’t want it to fry.
- Scoop garlic and rosemary out of pan, set aside. Then add fish to skillet skin side up. Meaning the meaty part is submerged in oil. Add more oil if you need to so that it’s submerged.
- Then put the skillet in the preheated oven for 15-20 minutes or until the flesh is cooked through.
- Pull fish out of oil and plate with the cooked garlic and rosemary as a garnish.
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