February 19, 2008

• Skate Wing, dusted with salt, pepper, and flour, then pan-fried in canola oil. Crispy, moist, delicious. This was the first time I'd ever cooked, purchased, or even eaten skate wing, but I kept reading about it and it looked very fresh at the fishmonger's (BlackSalt). Plus, pretty cheap. Jeanette and I both really, really liked this. It had a mild flavor, but stayed juicy, and the texture is quite different from the fish you're used to (which is apparent in the photos). And, it was cooked perfectly, if I may so boast.
• Roasted cubes of beet root. Peeled beet root cut into half-inch cubes, tossed with olive oil, salt, and a bit of sugar. Roasted at 400 until tender and slightly caramelized, about twenty minutes. Tossed once or twice during cooking.
• Roasted cubes of russet potato. Same prep and cooking as beet cubes above, except I don't peel the potatoes (the skins are the best parts), and don't use sugar.
• Leek and Potato mash. Leeks are cleaned, then sweated in an unhealthy amount of butter until very soft and translucent. Potato scraps (from making the cubes) are boiled separately under tender. Drain the potatoes then mash them with a fork. Add the leeks, a splash of milk, and season.

This was the entree the night I made olive oil-poached escolar with port caviar. Both dishes were really nice, but the crispy roasted root veggies and succulent skate wing made the entree course really satisfying. If I were doing this for a dinner party (or a restaurant), I would have added a couple elements--a sauce of some sort, and some weird things--but for a (relatively, for me) fast meal, home-cooked, for two, this was great.

The escolar was more refined, and highlighted the flavor of the fish very well. The port wine caviar was a successful application of a new technique, which is always satisfying, but more so because they were bursting with yummy flavor, much more so than any other "caviar" I've made. Oh, and the best thing about the escolar? No anal leakage! That link, by the way, points to the Wiki page for Escolar, and not to the many far worse things it could point to.

Oh, and if you're wondering, for dessert I made chocolate milkshakes (which are really easy with my immersion blender).

Posted by Barzelay at February 19, 2008 1:12 AM | Comments (19) | Food Additives, Seafood

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