Cooking with Jeremy: Halibut and orange salsa

Well, yes, I've been away, again. No excuses other than the standard one: life got in the way. When Annalena loses four pounds in a week, there is only one reason: stress. Ah, yes, that magical ingredient that we all hate and all love: stress. Yours truly could have used less of it as of late, but "it is what it is," as one is wont to say.
But I'm back. As resilient as an Ailanthus tree maybe (go and read "A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. You'll get it. I don't care what anyone says, it's not a children's book). Perhaps battered, definitely tired, but still standing.

Last night, I stood in the kitchen with one of the people who I don't spend enough time with or acknowledge: Jeremy. He's another one of the lads who has convinced me that my original position of not trusting anyone under the age of 30, was wrong, and that Anna Madrigal's advice "You don't have to keep up, you just have to keep open," is spot on. Jeremy and I met at a chorus rehearsal. I was there to make an announcement that should have been made a few days earlier, but wasn't. So, it was happenstance that I was there. As was the fact that it was a week when Jeremy, who loves to bake, was doing bakesale duty. Now, since yours truly was the Betty Crocker of bakesales for years, I don't miss a chance to give sass or grief. Jeremy took it all in, and gave it back. That is all Annalena needs to say "this one is a keeper." And he is. Last night, I got to know him a whole lot better. Yup, this here boy is a keeper Ma. For a lot of reasons. And if any of you single guy readers out there are interested in meeting a really charming young man with a lot of smarts and wit... YOU DAMN WELL BETTER BE GOOD ENOUGH FOR HIM.

Ok, having said that, what did we cook? Jeremy is on a path that I have to respect: he's going vegetarian, because of his overall world view. He's not there yet, and eats fish as his source of animal protein, on doctor's orders. Whether the doctor's orders are valid or not, fish it is. Guy and I usually eat fish on Tuesdays anyway, so the timing was perfect.

So, too, was the appearance of a PERFECT recipe in a cooking magazine: the halibut above. I had planned to make it with a local white fish similar to halibut, like cod, or pollak or something like that. But the best laid plans of mice, men and Annalena sometimes go astray. Bad weather kept my fishermen from the farmers market, so I had to go to "plan B."

What IS plan B? Well, when you can't get local, think about what you know in terms of sustainability. The recipe DID call for halibut. There are two types of this fish: atlantic, which is endangered, and pacific, which has been properly harvested, and is not. So, although the recipe only specified "halibut," pacific is what is was going to be.

This is a very, V ERY easy recipe to make. I suggest strongly that you use a nonstick pan, and that you have your oven at the requisite 425 temperature before you start. Also, this is going to cook REALLY fast, so do the non fish stuff first. That's the making of this incredible salsa.

You start by juicing enough oranges to get 3/4 of a cup. I can't tell you how many that will be: I needed 2, plus their pulp (use the pulp, for heaven's sake. It's good for you). When you have that juice, pour it into a small sauce pan, and at medium heat, start reducing it to 1/4 cup. You don't have to be as precise as a gymnastics judge here, but DO eyeball it. You'll see when it goes down far enough. Get it off the heat.

Now, use some of winter's wonderful bounty: blood oranges. Yes, yes, YES!!!! One of the things I love about blood oranges is that, while they all have that red, ruddy color about them, the amount of pigmen varies from orange to orange, so you don't know what you're going to get. You're going to want three of them, that you peel. The way I peel them is to cut horizontally at the top and bottom, and then run my knife down the side, taking off the peel. I then cut the fruit into rough chunks and put it in a bowl, with the reduced juice, about a hefty teaspoon of salt, and then two chopped jalapeno peppers, without the seeds. You can cut these out completely and use something like cilantro, or you can add more, or you can add both. It's up to you. My lovely Guy does not much care for cilantro, so I left it out. Let your tongue guide you here (as it always should with cooking).

Get a big nonstick pan ready and pour a few tablespoons of vegetable oil into it. While its heating up, pat your fish dry, and salt and pepper it. Watch the oil. As oil heats, you can see a "ripple" form across it. That's how hot you want the oil for cooking. Take your fish - try to get pieces that are 6-8 ounces in size, with some skin on them. Put them, skin side down in the oil. If it's hot enough, it will start sizzling immediately. After two minutes or so, turn the fish with a spatula, and then put the whole pan into the oven for 5 minutes.

You are now done. Remove the fish to paper towels, let it drain, and then plate it with a big spoon of the salsa underneath and on top.

We ate this with fregola pasta, and broccoli rabb with garlic and olive oil, plus a great salad of fennel and endive. A great, healthy, light winter meal.

Now, this is a long entry but go back and read that recipe. Don't you think you could put this on the table in less than thirty minutes?

So what are you waiting for???