SAVOIR FARE :: Poached Cod with Nettle-Mussel Broth
It’s been a while since we’ve had a recipe on coco kelley from my friend and chef JJ Proville, but today, not only do we have a gorgeous spring dish for you to try out, but we’re announcing the first of many seasonal dinners in Seattle to take place at my studio! For more info on that, check out the event page. I hope some of you will join us to delight in his amazing cooking. And now… the recipe (just a taste of what you might expect to see at this dinner!)
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Stinging nettles are one of the first delights in the seasonal cook’s spring repertoire, and they are going quite strong right now in April farmers’ markets. They’re a bit of a gift from nature for foraging as well, and can be found in abundance, growing by trails in parks or forest – especially bountiful after a good spell of rain.
Nettles are very high in both vitamins and minerals, and to protect themselves from roaming herbivores they’ve developed their well-known defense mechanism, as I was reminded recently on a cyclo-foraging trip while clad in scant biking tights. This is not the best option for wading through foresty underbrush. In fact, you will require pants for this task.
But in the name of haute-cuisine and glory, I persevered that day, and once I had hauled a nice, full bag of nettles home, they received the classic blanching treatment in order to tame those evil stingers: a brief sojourn in a boiling cauldron of salted water.
Following the hot bath, you’ll want to refresh them in ice water to fix the chlorophyll and retain that bright green color that is so appealing to the eye. In fact, in order to avoid the whole thing turning an unpleasant shade of brown, make sure all the ingredients are chilled before you blend and combine them. Then you can add the mussel broth to your nettles, leeks and onion puree and thin it out to your preference. In this version, I opted for a nice piece of poached fish, but you could go any way with a nettle broth. Oysters work particularly well.
POACHED COD WITH NETTLE-MUSSEL BROTH, TURNIPS FLOWERING KALE // serves 4
Ingredients:
For the Broth
- 1 kilo mussels, soaked and de-bearded
- 100 grams carrots, peeled and cut into 2-inch rounds
- 100 grams celery, cleaned and cut into 2 inch pieces
- 400 grams onions, sliced
- 50 grams garlic
- 200 grams leek, green part only
- 1 head parsley
- 400 grams spinach
- 2 kilograms stinging nettles, cleaned
- Kosher salt
- Butter
For the Turnips
- 1 bunch baby Tokyo turnips, quartered
To Assemble and Serve
- 1 bunch Chinese cabbage greens
- 1 bunch kohlrabi greens
- 1 head flowering kale, small leaves picked and reserved
- 4 100-gram portions true cod, cut from the thick end of the fillet
- 200 grams Ogo seaweed
- 2 radishes, mandolined thinly
- Sea salt
Method:
For the Broth
In a large pot over medium heat, sweat the carrots, celery, 200 grams of onion and garlic until soft. Add mussels and cover the pot. Cook until mussels are open, discarding any mussels that have remained shut. Pick the mussels and strain the cooking liquid, reserving both separately and discarding the vegetables from the broth.
In a separate pot, bring a large volume of water to the boil and add salt until water tastes slightly less salty than seawater. Set up an ice bath adjacent to the pot. In separate, manageable batches, blanch the nettles, spinach, and parsley for 30 seconds and transfer to ice bath for 1 minute. Remove from ice bath, wring water out of the nettles and transfer to another container. Keep chilled.
In a separate pot over medium heat, sweat the leek greens and 200 grams of onions until soft. Transfer to another container and chill. Assemble chilled blanched vegetables and the onion-leek mixture and blend together. Strain and reserve chilled. In a large bowl mix the nettles and vegetable mixture with the mussel juice, gradually adding the juice to taste and desired color. Season.
For the Turnips
In a large pot of salted water, blanch the turnips for 1 minute or until soft on the outside with a yielding center. Reserve.
To Assemble and Serve
Preheat a pot of water to 140F, maintaining the temperature with steady low heat. Place the cod portions in a thick Ziploc bag with a cube of butter and additional seasoning if desired, allocating two portions of fish per bag. Place the bags in the water for 8-10 minutes, or until the fish feels firm to the touch. Meanwhile, heat the broth. Coarsely tear greens and place them in the bottom of serving bowls. Ladle the broth on top of the greens. Place the cod on top of the greens and season with sea salt. Garnish with a turnip quarter, a mussel, and the flowering kale. Top the cod with the seaweed and radish.
images :: v gourmet // jj proville
