A while ago I was a part of a month-long challenge group where I had very limited ingredients and a little time to make delicious meals. The idea was to keep the food simple, but nutritious. It was a great opportunity for me to reinvent my food palette and try out new ingredients in my kitchen. The challenge also allowed me to look at food as a fuel and also taught me to work with limited options. I still love cooking and baking, which sometimes take hours in the kitchen! But I am glad to know that I can whip something up in a jiffy when I am really tight on time.
This Cod recipe is an ode to my love for Indian Cuisine. My love to Indian and Pakistani food is immense. I have probably tried countless recipes at home and always restock my spice rack to keep them fresh and accessible. Spices are little miracle workers, which turn the most bland food into something very colorful and super delicious. Fish, on the other hand, can be bland and quite tasteless if cooked without sauces and caloric dense rubs. Don’t get me wrong, I love a fresh caught trout poached in red wine and baked in bechamel sauce. But those recipes would beat the purpose of the month-long challenge I committed myself to. I decided to come up with something, which would make me love fish without sacrificing the health benefits and the taste. Moreover, my aim was to be able to feed my family with this food. Otherwise, I risked spending my entire day in the kitchen cooking separately for everyone! From the way my boys gobbled up this dish, I can tell it is a success.
This recipe is perfectly balanced between healthy fats, protein and carbohydrate. So, it can be consumed without guilt if you are on a healthy regimen.
Ingredients:
10 oz Cod Fish Fillet, fresh or frozen
2 Tbsp Avocado Oil
2 Cloves of Garlic
1 Tsp of Fresh Ginger
1/2 Small Onion
1 Tsp Biryani Spice Mix (you can make your own spice mix, too)
10 Spears of Asparagus
1/4 Cup of Water
1 Tsp of Grated Lemon Zest
Lemon for taste and for Garnish
You can add salt if you desire so
Instructions:
Increase the amount of ingredients accordingly if you wish to make more of the fish.
I often use fresh fish as nothing can beat the taste of fresh ingredients. But I also keep frozen fish in the freezer in case I urgently need to cook something very quickly. For this recipe I used frozen fish and thawed it according to the directions written in the back of the sealed packs. You can leave the fish out in the refrigerator overnight and let it thaw or you can also put the fish under a running cold water for 15 minutes, without removing the fish from vacuum sealed pouch it comes in. I usually go with the second option when I am using frozen fish. While the fish is getting thawed we will keep ourselves busy chopping other ingredients for this dish.
Thinly dice garlic, onion and fresh ginger, as shown in the photos.
Turn the skillet on to medium heat and pour the avocado oil. The choice of oil is purely personal. I happen to like avocado oil a lot due to its rich taste and its ability to withstand higher temperatures without breaking down. It is a perfect oil for searing fish and other meat. After the oil heats up a bit add the garlic, toss for about 30 seconds and add the chopped onions. Fry them for about a minute, until onion gets a little translucent and garlic turns a little golden. Add this point you are ready to add the Biryani spice. If you are afraid of the spices burning, please add a little water right after you add spices to the skillet. This will prevent spices from burning.
Toss the spices with garlic and onion for about 30-40 seconds making sure that nothing is burning. If you sense the heat is too high, feel free to turn it down a notch. Center the ingredients in the skillet in the middle and place the cod fish right on top of them. Don’t bother the fish until the bottom is nicely caramelized. This should take about 2-3 minutes.
Once once side of the fish is nicely caramelized, turn it to the other side and keep on giving it a nice sear for about 2 minutes. When the fish is nicely seared and ready, sprinkle the fresh ginger. I also take a silicone spoon to gather as much sauce as I can to put back on top of the fish before I send it to the oven to bake some more.
Put the fish on a previously prepared baking sheet and place it in the oven for 350F for 5-10 minutes.
Now it is time to prep the asparagus, which, in my opinion goes so well with this fish. I do not discard remainder of the sauce under the fish. Instead I use it as a base to cook the asparagus in. Wash and cut the bottom 1-2 inches off the asparagus. Place asparagus in the skillet on medium heat and give it a nice sear, rolling them with a spatula.
Add 1/4 cup of water and close the lid of the skillet, to give a nice 2 minute blanche to asparagus. Afer 2 minutes passed turn off the skillet, add a little salt and pepper, and add the grated lemon zest. Viola! 20 minutes later you have a delicious meal to satisfy your cravings. The cod fish comes out very juicy and tender. It absorbs so much flavor and as far from being bland and tasteless.
Biryani Cod With Asparagus
Ingredients
- 10 oz Cod Fish Fillet
- 2 Tbsp Avocado Oil
- 2 Cloves of Garlic
- 1 Tsp of Fresh Ginger
- 1/2 Small Onion
- 1 Tsp Biryani Spice Mix
- 10 Spears of Asparagus
- 1/4 Cup of Water
- 1 Tsp of Grated Lemon Zest
- Lemon for taste and for Garnish
Instructions
- Increase the amount of ingredients accordingly if you wish to make more of the fish.
- For this recipe I used frozen fish and thawed it according to the directions written in the back of the sealed packs. You can leave the fish out in the refrigerator overnight and let it thaw that way or you can also put the fish under a running cold water for 15 minutes, without removing the fish from vacuum sealed pouch it comes in. I usually go with the second option when I am using frozen fish. While the fish is getting thawed we will keep ourselves busy with chopping other ingredients for this dish.
- Thinly dice garlic, onion and fresh ginger.
- Turn the skillet on to medium heat and pour the avocado oil. The choice of oil is purely personal. I happen to like avocado oil a lot due to its rich taste and its ability to withstand higher temperatures without breaking down. It is a perfect oil for searing fish and other meat. After the oil heats up a bit add the garlic, toss for about 30 seconds and add the chopped onions. Fry them for about a minute, until onion gets a little translucent. Add this point you are ready to add the Biryani spice. If you are afraid of the spices burning, please add a little water right after you add spices to the skillet. This will prevent the burning of the spices.
- Toss the spices with garlic and onion for about 30-40 seconds making sure that nothing is burning. If you sense the heat is too high, feel free to turn it down a notch. Center the spices in the middle and place the cod fish right in the middle of the skillet. Don't bother the fish until the bottom is nicely caramelized. This should take about 2-3 minutes.
- Once once side of the fish is nicely caramelized, turn it to the other side and keep on giving it a nice sear for about 2 minutes. When the fish is nicely seared and ready, sprinkle the fresh ginger. I also take a silicone spoon to gather as much sauce as I can to put back on top of the fish before I send it to the oven to bake some more.
- Put the fish on a previously prepared baking sheet and place it in the oven for 350F for 5-10 minutes.
- Now it is time to prep the asparagus, which, in my opinion goes so well with this fish. I do not discard remainder of the sauce under the fish. Instead I use it as a base to cook the asparagus in. Wash and cut the bottom 1-2 inches off the asparagus. Place asparagus in the skillet on medium heat and give it a nice sear, rolling them with a spatula.
- Add 1/4 cup of water and close the lid of the skillet, to give a nice 2 minute blanche to asparagus. Afer 2 minutes passed turn off the skillet, add a little salt and pepper to the asparagus and add the grated lemon zest. Viola! 20 minutes later you have a delicious meal to satisfy your cravings. The cod fish comes out very juicy and tender. It absorbs so much flavor and as far from being bland and tasteless.
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