Turbot is our favorite fish to cook right now, and our seafood expert, Mike Kanter, loves pairing this delicious flat fish with roasted cauliflower florets. Serve this up at your next dinner party and your guests will go home wowed! Get the recipe after the jump.
Total Recipe Time: 40-45 minutes
Difficulty: Moderately Difficult
Servings: 2-3
What You’ll Need:
2 turbot chops
3 tbsp. canola oil
Cauliflower purée
½ head cauliflower, cut into florets
1 cup milk or half and half
Water to cover
Sautéed spinach
8 oz. baby spinach
1 tbsp. of butter
Roasted cauliflower florets
1 cup cauliflower florets
1 cup Romanesco cauliflower florets
4 tbsp. butter
1 tbsp. capers minced
1 tbsp. lemon segments
What to Do:
1) Preheat the oven to 400°F.
2) Cut the cauliflower into florets, place in a pot with the milk and water lightly seasoned with salt, and simmer until soft. Place cauliflower into a blender and add some of the cooking liquid and cream (if you have on hand) and blend until smooth Season to taste with salt and white pepper.
3) Cut florets from the remaining half of cauliflower and the Romanesco cauliflower. Toss in oil and season with salt and pepper, spread on a cookie sheet and place in 400°F oven. Roast until just soft and starting to brown. Remove and keep warm.
4) Season the turbot chops liberally with salt and pepper. Dust with flour shaking off the excess.
5) Place a non-stick frying or well-seasoned cast iron pan over medium heat and add 2 tbsp. vegetable oil.
6) Add the turbot chops to the pan, dark skin-side down. Add a teaspoon of butter to the pan. Cook until golden and crisp on the underside, for approximately 4–5 minutes.
7) Turn the turbot over, and continue to cook for 4 minutes. Remove the pan from the oven.
8) Remove and allow it to rest on your cutting board while you prepare your caper brown butter sauce.
9) Wipe the oil from the pan used to cook the turbot. Add 4 tablespoons of butter. Stir with a wooden spoon or spatula as it foams, scraping the browned bits from the pan. When the butter is golden brown, add the capers and lemon segments to the pan and stir into the hot butter. Remove from heat.
10) Wilt the baby spinach in a hot pan with a little butter or olive oil. Season with salt and white pepper.
11) Slowly warm the purée in the pot, stirring frequently to avoid splatter. Adjust seasoning.
12) Place a generous spoonful of purée on each plate followed by a small mound of spinach and a sprinkling of roasted florets.
13) According to your preference, you can easily peel the skin from the fish at this point—and remove fillets from the bone if preferred.
14) To finish, place the chop on top of the spinach and sprinkle the caper brown butter around the plate. Enjoy!
Mike says, “Turbot reminds me of a porterhouse steak, as one part of the fillet is firm and fantastic in flavor and the other is juicy and succulent. I recommend cooking skin on and on the bone to get the best results. After cooking, the skin peels away exposing the fillet. The fillet comes easily off the bone with the help of a butter knife, including the small little morsels near the edges. Once the top fillet is removed, flip over and repeat with the bottom fillet.”