Swordfish en Cocotte with Fennel and Pesto
SERVES 4
WHY THIS RECIPE WORKS For a hearty, slow-cooked seafood dinner with intense flavor, we started with meaty swordfish steaks and cooked them en cocotte, a method that calls for roasting meat or poultry in a covered pot in a low oven to develop big flavor. For a richly flavored aromatic base, we sautéed some thinly sliced fennel and shallots in olive oil. To pump up the flavor of our dish, we stirred in a small amount of nutty, garlicky pesto. Finally, we placed our swordfish steaks on the sautéed vegetables, put the lid on top, and moved it all to a 250-degree oven. Covering the pot with a sheet of aluminum foil before placing the lid on top helped prevent any steam from escaping. As the fish cooked, the fennel, shallots, and pesto created a rich sauce that complemented the meaty fish. Stirring in a bit of lemon juice at the end of cooking contributed bright notes and brought the elements of the dish together. Make sure your swordfish steaks are of equal size to ensure even cooking; if your steaks are thicker or thinner than 1¼ inches, be sure to adjust the cooking time as needed. You can substitute halibut steaks for the swordfish.
|
1 |
fennel bulb |
|
2 |
shallots |
|
2 |
tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil |
|
¼ |
cup prepared basil pesto |
|
4 |
(6-ounce) swordfish steaks, 1¼ inches thick |
|
1 |
lemon |
1. Adjust oven rack to lowest position and heat oven to 250 degrees. Remove fennel stalks and fronds. Trim fennel bulb, cut in half, core, and cut crosswise into ½-inch-thick slices. Thinly slice shallots. Heat oil in Dutch oven over medium heat until shimmering. Add fennel and shallots and cook until softened, 6 to 8 minutes. Off heat, stir in pesto.
2. Pat swordfish dry with paper towels and season with salt and pepper. Lay swordfish on top of fennel mixture. Press large sheet of aluminum foil over pot to seal, then cover tightly with lid. Transfer pot to oven and cook until fish flakes apart when gently prodded with paring knife and registers 140 degrees, 35 to 40 minutes.
3. Gently transfer swordfish to platter. Cook fennel mixture over medium-high heat until thickened slightly, about 1 minute. Squeeze lemon for 2 teaspoons juice. Off heat, stir in lemon juice and season with salt and pepper to taste. Spoon fennel mixture over swordfish and serve.