Halibut in Miso Broth

Let's get the obvious out of the way.....the apology for the picture.  It's winter and in Alabama that means it gets dark at 5:00pm so I get no natural light for beautiful photography.  Moving on.

Now for confession time.  I've never cooked with miso.  Oh sure, I've eaten it.  Love it in fact, but never used it in a recipe.  What can I say?  New ingredientses (Real Housewives reference) intimidate me but I'm vowing to try new things this year,  So on January 8, it was miso.

The recipe called for white or yellow miso.  So I'm in the miso aisle at Whole Foods and all I see is Shiro Miso.   Damnit.  Why can't things be easy?

So I buy it and then take to Google.  This article is everything you need to know about miso.  It turns out that Shiro Miso is, in fact, white miso and the one that will work in most recipes.  Which could be why it's the only one Whole Foods carried.

With that roadblock out of the way, the rest of this could not have been easier.  This is an under-30 minute meal.....chop the garlic, ginger and scallions....slice a few mushrooms......and you're ready to go.  Whole Foods had some beautiful wild Halibut, but if you can't find that, substitute Cod.  I couldn't find scallions (I know, right) so I used shallot and garnished with some chopped chives.  Improvise, people.

This is definitely going into the fish rotation and with my favorite pescatarian arriving for a few month stay this afternoon, I'll need more just like this one.  Bonus info....this comes in at just 250 calories per serving and 9 grams of fat so it'll def fit into your New Year's healthy eating plan!

Here's the recipe:

Halibut in Miso Broth

Ellie Krieger

Serves 4

2 tablespoons canola or other neutral tasting oil

2 ounces shiitake mushroom caps (4 caps total) sliced

3 scallions, thinly sliced, dark-green parts reserved for optional garnish

1 clove garlic, minced

2 teaspoons peeled, finely minced fresh ginger root

3 cups water

3 tablespoons white or yellow miso paste

Four 6-ounce skinned halibut fillets (may substitute cod)

1/4 teaspoon kosher salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 cup loosely packed baby spinach leaves

Directions

Heat 1 tablespoon of the oil in a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat.  Once the oil shimmers, add the mushrooms and cook for 3 to 4 minutes, stirring occasionally, until they are browned.  Transfer the mushrooms to a plate.

Reduce the heat to medium; add the remaining tablespoon of oil to the pan.  Add the scallion whites, garlic, and ginger; cook for about 30 seconds, stirring, until fragrant.

Add 2 3/4 cups of the water to the skillet and bring to barely a boil, then reduce the heat to medium-low.  While the water is heating whisk the miso paste with the remaining 1/4 cup water in a liquid measuring cup until dissolved then whisk that mixture into the skillet.

Season the fish with the salt and pepper then place in the skillet, skinned sides down.  Cover and cook for about 8 minutes over low to medium-low heat, maintaining a gentle bubbling, until the fish flakes easily with a fork and is fairly firm.

To serve, place one piece of the fish in each wide shallow bowl.  Stir the sauteed mushrooms and the spinach into the liquid in the skillet then remove from the heat.  Pour the broth with spinach and mushrooms around the fish in each bowl.  Garnish with the scallion greens, if using.