new fish poached in citrus chili tomato broth

it's not impressive but it is delicious which is impressive if you really think about it

Hello!

Have you watched the Wicked trailer yet? Don’t worry, if you haven’t, I’ve watched it enough times for all of us. But just in case, here is it. 

This weekend, I went to the Yuba River and didn’t get out of the water for four hours. Have you spent any time in a large body of water recently? If not, I highly recommend it. Also, if possible, I recommend finding between 20 and 30 gay people to sing Defying Gravity with you in said body of water because it will literally change your life and rewrite your brain chemistry and also maybe your soul chemistry. I’m speaking from experience (because that’s what I did this past weekend), so you can trust me! 

You can also trust me with the fish recipe below because I’ve been working on it for a long long long long long long time. So long, in fact, that I’ve already written the recipe for it, but as I explained in this little video, I’ve changed it again! 

gschlichte

A post shared by @gschlichte

The first time I developed this recipe, I did it in about twenty minutes on ATK: Next Gen. If you want to watch it in real-time, it's in episode 8. What you’ll see is me, classically, famously, overthinking and doing way too much. Great TV! Bad food! Well, not bad, but not great, either. 

So, when I came home, I decided I wanted to make it great. So, what did I do? That’s right! I overthought it and did way too much. Again. I got so focused on making this recipe ~impressive~ that I forgot about making it delicious. And accessible. And good. And like something people might actually want to come home and cook. 

So I tried again. And again. And again. And then I tried one more time, and I think we’re finally there. It’s bright, it’s warm, it’s delicious, and it all happens in one pot. It’s adjustable and flexible. You can put your own twist on it, and I really hope you do. You can probably make it in under an hour, but you’re not on TV, and no one is timing you, so I wouldn’t recommend it if you don’t have to. What I would recommend is pouring yourself a nice glass of whatever it is you like to drink, putting on this playlist, and having a sweet little time in the kitchen cooking for yourself or for some people you love. 

fish poached in citrus chili tomato broth: ingredients

Personally! Recently, I’ve loved eating this over rice with extra lime wedges (or cheeks!) on the side and a drizzle of nice olive oil. I’ve also served this with crusty bread or over pasta. All are good, all are totally up to you! 

• ¼ cup of olive oil

• two shallots, thinly sliced: you could also use a medium red onion 

• one large bulb of fennel, thinly sliced: reserve some fronds reserved for garnish if you want

• 4-6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced: don’t like garlic? don’t use it!

• 1 tablespoon crushed red chili flake: this is spicy! start with less if you’d like it less spicy

• lots of fresh cracked black pepper

• 2 tablespoons tomato paste

• about a pound or more of your favorite tomatoes, quartered: a pint and a half of cherry tomatoes (at that point, just use two pints, and no need to quarter!), romas, I’ve really been loving and using campari’s—pretty much anything, but I wouldn’t go like heirloom or beefsteak here, personally! 

• 10-15 kumquats, sliced: I’ve been finding kumquats at the big box grocery store by my house, which is so rad! if you can’t find them, I’d use two medium tangerines or one big tangelo, sliced as thin as you possible can and then cut into eighths—if you can’t find either of those, you can use a naval or cara cara orange, but I’d throw in the juice of a lime or two as well (kumquats and tangerines have a little tartness that’s nice!) 

• about two pounds or so of your favorite fish, cut into two-inch chunks: I’m usually feeding four big boys and sometimes also a girl, so please adjust this to suit your needs. (also, I usually use cod, but on the show, I did salmon, and I’ve also done mahi and sea bass this way, so really, pick your favorite!) 

• 1.5 tablespoons kosher salt (I use diamond crystal, you may need to adjust if you’re using another brand)

• Optional for serving 

  • lime wedges (or cheeks!) 

  • rice 

  • pasta 

  • crusty bread

  • a drizzle of olive oil 

  • another crack of black pepper 

fish poached in citrus chili tomato broth: method

1. In a large dutch oven (or your favorite big pot) over medium heat, cook down the shallots, fennel, and garlic in the olive oil until jammy and caramelized (about 10 minutes)

2. Add the black pepper and chili flake and bloom in the oil for about thirty seconds, then add the tomato paste and stir, cooking out some of the raw paste flavor (about 2 minutes) 

3. Add tomatoes and a big big pinch of kosher salt, stirring regularly until they start to release their juice and cook down (about 10 minutes)

4. Add eight cups of water, the kosher salt, and bring to a gentle boil. Once boiling, reduce to a simmer, add the kumquats, cover and let simmer for 10 minutes to bring all the flavors together. After 10 minutes, taste it! More salt? Some lime juice? More chili flake? Up to you! 

5. Turn the heat down to low and make sure the water is no longer boiling—we’re poaching here, and we want the fish to cook gently! Drop in your fish, and make sure they’re fully submerged. Cover and cook for 7-10 minutes or until the fish is opaque and just starting to flake. 

6. You’re done! I usually just put everything on the table and let everyone serve themselves. Rice, bread, limes, olive oil, a little more black pepper—you can’t go wrong, baby. 

brb defying gravity <3 

Garrett