Miso Makes a Good Fish Better
Black Cod Broiled With Miso
By MARK BITTMAN
Black cod with miso was not invented by Nobu Matsuhisa, the chef at Nobu in TriBeCa, but he certainly popularized it. His time-consuming recipe, which calls for soaking the fish in a sweet miso marinade for a couple of days, is a variation on a traditional Japanese process that uses sake lees, the sweet solids that remain after making sake, to marinate fish.
Black cod, also known as sable-fish, is a North Pacific fish that has long been smoked. When I was growing up, it was thought of as the rich person's equivalent of lox, and purchased an eighth of a pound at a time. It is perhaps the richest tasting fin fish, not unlike swordfish in density but meltingly tender, almost buttery.
If you broil black cod with nothing but salt, you already have a winning dish. If you broil it with miso - the intensely salty paste made from fermented soybeans - along with some mirin and quite a bit of sugar, you create something stunningly delicious. And no long marination is necessary.
Black cod is in season now, but you might still need to order it in advance from a good fish counter; standard supermarkets are not likely to carry it. This recipe will also work well with regular cod.
Two things to note:
1) Any miso will do here, but I prefer the darker, more full-flavored varieties, which produce a more attractive result.
2) And do not overcook the fish: the instant a thin-bladed knife passes through its thickest part with little resistance, it's done.
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Black Cod Broiled With Miso
Yield: 4 servings.
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup miso, preferably dark
1/2 cup mirin, sake or white wine
1 1/2 to 2 pounds black cod fillets (skin may be on or off).
1. Heat broiler; set rack 3 to 4 inches from heat source. Combine first three ingredients in a small saucepan and, over low heat, bring almost to a boil, stirring occasionally just until blended; mixture will be fairly thin. Turn off heat.
2. Put fillets in an ovenproof baking dish or skillet, preferably nonstick, and spoon half the sauce on top. Broil until sauce bubbles and begins to brown, then spoon remaining amount over fish. Continue to broil, adjusting heat or rack position if sauce or fish is browning too quickly, until fish is just cooked through. Serve immediately.
Black Cod Broiled With Miso
By MARK BITTMAN
Black cod with miso was not invented by Nobu Matsuhisa, the chef at Nobu in TriBeCa, but he certainly popularized it. His time-consuming recipe, which calls for soaking the fish in a sweet miso marinade for a couple of days, is a variation on a traditional Japanese process that uses sake lees, the sweet solids that remain after making sake, to marinate fish.
Black cod, also known as sable-fish, is a North Pacific fish that has long been smoked. When I was growing up, it was thought of as the rich person's equivalent of lox, and purchased an eighth of a pound at a time. It is perhaps the richest tasting fin fish, not unlike swordfish in density but meltingly tender, almost buttery.
If you broil black cod with nothing but salt, you already have a winning dish. If you broil it with miso - the intensely salty paste made from fermented soybeans - along with some mirin and quite a bit of sugar, you create something stunningly delicious. And no long marination is necessary.
Black cod is in season now, but you might still need to order it in advance from a good fish counter; standard supermarkets are not likely to carry it. This recipe will also work well with regular cod.
Two things to note:
1) Any miso will do here, but I prefer the darker, more full-flavored varieties, which produce a more attractive result.
2) And do not overcook the fish: the instant a thin-bladed knife passes through its thickest part with little resistance, it's done.
===========================
Black Cod Broiled With Miso
Yield: 4 servings.
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup miso, preferably dark
1/2 cup mirin, sake or white wine
1 1/2 to 2 pounds black cod fillets (skin may be on or off).
1. Heat broiler; set rack 3 to 4 inches from heat source. Combine first three ingredients in a small saucepan and, over low heat, bring almost to a boil, stirring occasionally just until blended; mixture will be fairly thin. Turn off heat.
2. Put fillets in an ovenproof baking dish or skillet, preferably nonstick, and spoon half the sauce on top. Broil until sauce bubbles and begins to brown, then spoon remaining amount over fish. Continue to broil, adjusting heat or rack position if sauce or fish is browning too quickly, until fish is just cooked through. Serve immediately.
