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About Our Sustainable Fish From Iceland, Plus Easy Steelhead Recipes

Fresh Direct · March 10, 2020 ·

Grindavik, Iceland is a small town with a 1,000-year-old fishing history. These days, it’s home to our partner Matorka, who is carrying that tradition into the future.

Steelhead Salmon Crudo
Matorka is a leader in sustainable aquaculture, raising steelhead and arctic char using a land-based farm that leverages the purity of Iceland’s natural resources in an efficient, carbon-neutral way. Iceland’s remote location and careful resource management make it one of the greenest countries in the world and Matorka is committed to keeping it that way.

Situated among bright blue hot springs, the farm is uniquely powered by the pristine glacial waters that flow through it, which are naturally filtered by nearby lava fields. These geothermal waters self-regulate the temperature, enabling Matorka to operate with a carbon-neutral footprint.

Matorka’s hatchery is in the southern part of Iceland, where the fish are nurtured by a team of aquaculture specialists before being transported east to the farm. There they are raised without the use of antibiotics, chemicals, or hormones. Once harvested, the fish take a 20-minute ride to the airport. After a short 5-hour flight, they land at JFK and are brought straight to our facilities before making their way to your home.

To taste these fish is to taste the purity of the crystal-clear waters in which they were raised. We like to showcase their incredible flavor and delicate texture by slicing the fillets thinly into in a raw crudo with olive oil and seasonal citrus, or we’ll sear them simply in a pan (we’ve shared some recipes below).

Matorka translates to “food energy” in Icelandic, which captures the mission of this trusted FreshDirect partner: to sustainably raise the best-tasting, healthiest fish in the world.

Try Matorka sustainable steelhead in one of the recipes below and shop ingredients at FreshDirect


Steelhead Salmon Crudo with Winter Citrus

What you’ll need:

Two 10-12 oz steelhead salmon fillets
2 blood oranges (may substitute with Cara Caras)
6 pitted green olives (such as castelvetrano, cerignola, or picholine), sliced into matchsticks
¼ cup thinly-sliced celery stalks or fennel bulb
Extra-virgin olive oil
Flaky sea salt

What to do:

Place steelhead fillets flesh-side up on your work surface and cut into ⅛-inch thick slices, stopping before you reach the skin. Hold each fillet in place with your free hand, then cut through the flesh close to the skin with the knife parallel to the work surface to create individual slices. Divide slices between plates for serving.

Slice off about ¼ inch from the stem and bottom ends of oranges. Use these flat ends to stand the oranges upright on your work surface, then carefully cut along the sides to remove the peel and pith, rotating to reach all sides. Hold each trimmed orange over a bowl and cut along the membranes to remove the individual segments, allowing the segments to fall into the bowl. Once you have removed all segments, squeeze as much juice as you can from the leftover membranes into the bowl. Cut the segments into smaller pieces.

Scatter orange segments, sliced celery or fennel, and olive matchsticks over steelhead on plates. Drizzle with olive oil and reserved juice, then finish with sea salt.


Steelhead Salmon with Lentils

Steelhead Salmon Lentils

What you’ll need:

Four 8 oz steelhead salmon fillets
1 cup green lentils
2¾ cups water
1 tablespoon kosher salt, plus more for seasoning
2 medium carrots, peeled and cut into ¼-inch rounds
1 large leek, white part only, sliced into ¼-inch rounds
1 tablespoon whole grain mustard (can substitute Dijon for a creamier texture)
1 tablespoon sherry vinegar
2 teaspoons olive oil, plus more for searing
½ teaspoon cracked black pepper

What to do:

Place lentils, water, and 1 tsp kosher salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil, then reduce to a simmer. Cook, partially covered, for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally.

After 10 minutes, add carrots and leek to saucepan with lentils and continue to simmer, stirring occasionally, until al dente, about 10 minutes more. Add more water if very dry. Once done, remove from heat and let rest to fully hydrate. Stir in mustard, sherry vinegar, olive oil, black pepper, and 2 tsp kosher salt. Keep warm.

Season steelhead fillets with plenty of salt. Heat a thin layer of olive oil in a nonstick or cast iron pan over medium-high heat. Add fillets skin-side down. Reduce heat to medium after 1 minute. Cook about 4 minutes more, then flip fillets and cook 2 minutes more. Remove from pan.

Add more water to lentils if needed to moisten, then divide between four bowls or plates. Nestle fillets on top of each and serve—we like to pair with blanched kale on the side.

Filed Under: Dinner, Recipes, Sustainability Tagged With: fish, seafood, Steelhead, sustainability

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Nothing warms the soul quite like a hearty fish st Nothing warms the soul quite like a hearty fish stew. This rustic vegetable soup recipe melds more delicate flavored fish with a combination of soul-soothing  vegetables.

What You’ll Need:
- 2 strips thick-cut bacon, cut into 1/4-inch pieces
- 4 cippolini onions peeled and cut into sixths, keep root intact
- 3 medium carrots, peeled and cut into ½-inch pieces
- 4 hakurei turnips, greens trimmed, peeled and quartered
- 1 medium clove of garlic, thickly sliced
- 1/3 head of cabbage, cut into 1-inch pieces
- 5 fingerling potatoes cut into 1/3-inch coins
- 4 cups water
- Olive oil
- Kosher or sea salt and black pepper
- 4 6- 8 oz cod fillets

What to Do:
Place a 12” wide pot on medium heat and add 1 tbsp olive oil and bacon. Cook, stirring often until bacon starts to brown.

Add onions and garlic, and cook, gently turning until onions start to lightly brown. Add carrots and a few pinches of salt. Continue to cook for approximately 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Lower heat if vegetables start to brown. Add turnips and cook a few minutes more.

Add cabbage and potatoes, 1 tsp salt, a pinch of black pepper and the water.

Bring to a simmer and cook approximately 5 to 8 minutes.

Season fillets well with salt & pepper while the soup is simmering, allowing the seasoning to penetrate.

After the soup has simmered, nestle the fillets into the soup, gently shaking the pot to allow the fish to settle in. Spoon some soup over the top of the fillets, adjust heat to low. Cover the soup and allow to simmer for approximately 5 minutes.

Using a spatula, remove the fillets and place in individual soup bowls. Adjust seasoning and evenly divide vegetables and broth into the bowls. Add some cracked black pepper on top and a drizzle of olive oil to serve.
Think outside of the box at your next taco night w Think outside of the box at your next taco night with this recipe where everything is cooked simply on a sheet pan. We love making these tacos with salmon, but feel free to swap it with shrimp, scallops, or another fish fillet.

What you'll need:
- One third of a 7 oz can of chipotle peppers in adobo (about 1/4 cup)
- 1/2 cup honey
- 1/2 cup lightly-packed brown sugar
- 1/4 cup soy sauce
- 1/4 cup freshly-squeezed lime juice
- 1 teaspoon cumin
- 1 small container grape tomatoes
- 1 onion, cut into wedges through root end
- 6 scallion bottoms (trim off the green parts)
- 1 poblano pepper, cut into 1-inch strips
- 1 red bell pepper, cut into 1-inch strips
- For serving: tortillas, lime wedges, sour cream

What to do:
Preheat oven to 400 F. Season salmon with salt and pepper and set aside.

Place chipotles in adobo in food processor or blender, along with honey, lightly-packed brown sugar, soy sauce, lime juice, and cumin. Blend until well-combined. Set aside a few tablespoons of sauce for serving, then transfer the rest to a large bowl.

Place salmon in bowl and evenly-coat all over in sauce. Transfer fillets to a foil-lined baking sheet, leaving excess sauce in bowl. Add to bowl tomatoes, onion wedges, poblano and bell peppers, and scallions. Toss to coat in sauce, then add in an even layer to the baking sheet with the salmon.

Roast everything in the oven until salmon is done and vegetables lightly caramelized, about 10 minutes. Serve inside tortillas with lime wedges, sour cream, and reserved sauce.
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This cioppino recipe is excellent for a quick and This cioppino recipe is excellent for a quick and warming weeknight meal. Typically, it would be made with whatever the catch of the day was, and you can feel free do the same here by swapping out any other fish or shellfish you’ve got—clams, crab, squid, lobster, halibut, or sea bass would all be worthy choices. 

What you'll need:
- 3 tablespoons + 1/2 cup olive oil
- 1 medium onion, diced
- 1 fennel bulb, diced
- 2 tablespoons capers, rinsed and chopped
- ½ cup kalamata olives, rinsed and chopped
- 2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 3 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ teaspoon chili flakes
- 2 cups dry white wine
- One 28 oz. can of crushed tomatoes
- 2 cups water
-2 lb. mussels
- One 8–10 oz. fillet of cod or other white fish (skin may be left on or off)
- ½ lb. shrimp
 

What to do:
Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a heavy pot over medium heat. Add onion, fennel, capers, olives and salt. Sauté a few minutes until onion and fennel begin to soften. Toss in the garlic and sauté until fragrant, 1-2 minutes more.

Stir in chili flakes, then pour in white wine. Simmer until liquid is mostly evaporated, then stir in crushed tomatoes, ½ cup olive oil, and 2 cups water. Simmer for a few minutes, then add mussels. Cover and simmer 3 minutes.

Cut fish into bite-sized pieces and add to stew along with shrimp. Simmer uncovered a few minutes more until both are cooked through. Serve in bowls with crusty bread and salted butter.

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