Teriyaki Black Cod with Sticky Rice Cakes and Seared Baby Bok Choy
Reprinted with permission from Golden Door Cooks at Home: Favorite Recipes From the Celebrated Spa by Dean Rucker and Marah Stets (April 2009 Clarkson Potter) $40.
Serves 6
INGREDIENTS
9 baby bok choy, halved lengthwise
For the sticky rice cakes:
3/4 cup sushi rice
Grapeseed or canola oil spray
2 tablespoons sliced scallions (white and green parts)
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1 tablespoon unseasoned rice vinegar
1-1/2 teaspoons mirin
Pinch of kosher salt
Pinch of freshly ground black pepper
For the black cod:
1/2 cup low-sodium soy sauce
3/4 cup fresh orange juice (from 3 oranges)
1/4 cup mirin
1 teaspoon minced peeled fresh ginger
1/2 teaspoon cornstarch
6 (4-ounce) skinless black cod fillets, each 1 inch thick
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
Grapeseed or canola oil spray
1/2 cup thinly sliced scallions (white and light green parts), for serving
1 tablespoon sesame seeds, toasted (see page 27), for serving
PREPARATION
Bring a large pot of water to a rapid boil. Prepare a bowl of ice water. Add the bok choy to the boiling water and cook for 30 seconds. Drain the bok choy and immediately transfer it to the ice water for 2 minutes to cool. Drain the bok choy and set aside on a clean kitchen towel to soak up excess moisture.
Prepare the sticky rice cakes. Put the rice in a large bowl and cover with cold water. Use your hand to swish the rice around a few times. Drain and repeat until the water in the bowl is clear; you may need to rinse it several times.
Put the rice in a small, heavy-bottomed saucepan and add water to cover by 1 inch. Cover the pan; for best results, do not uncover the pan at any time during cooking. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, 4 to 5 minutes; you will be able to tell the water is boiling by the large amount of steam pouring out from under the lid. Reduce the heat to low and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes. Remove the pan from the heat and let stand, covered, for 15 minutes.
Spray a small sauté pan with grapeseed oil and heat over medium heat. Add the scallions, garlic, and ginger and cook, stirring, until just softened and fragrant, about 30 seconds. Fold the scallion mixture into the warm, cooked rice along with the vinegar, mirin, salt, and pepper.
Line a platter or baking sheet with parchment paper sprayed with oil or with waxed paper. Have a separate bowl of water ready. Dip your hands into the water and scoop up 1/4 cup rice. Form it into a tightly packed cake about 2 inches thick and place the cake on the platter. Repeat with the remaining rice to form five more cakes. Set aside in the refrigerator.
Meanwhile, in a small saucepan, combine the soy sauce, orange juice, mirin, and ginger. Bring to a boil and reduce the heat to low. Simmer just until reduced by half, 30 to 40 minutes. In a small dish, mix the cornstarch and 1 teaspoon water and stir this slurry into the simmering sauce. Simmer 30 seconds and remove the pan from the heat.
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Season each fillet with pepper. Spray an ovenproof sauté pan (preferably nonstick) with grapeseed oil and heat over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Lay the fish in the pan flesh side down (not the side where the skin was); you should hear a sizzle. Cook until golden brown, about 3 minutes. Turn the fish over and place the pan in the oven. Cook until the fish is just cooked through, 6 to 8 minutes. Pour half of the teriyaki sauce over the fish. The sauce will bubble and simmer. Gently turn the fish over and gently swirl the pan to coat the fish. Turn the fish over again.
While the fish is cooking, finish the bok choy: spray a nonstick skillet with grapeseed oil and heat over medium-high heat until hot but not smoking. Place the bok choy in the pan cut side down and cook until deep brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Turn the bok choy over and cook 1 minute. Remove the bok choy from the pan.
To finish the rice cakes, spray a nonstick skillet with oil and heat over medium heat until hot but not smoking. Add the rice cakes and cook until heated through and golden on both sides, 2 to 3 minutes per side.
Divide the bok choy halves among six plates. Place a rice cake and a fillet of teriyaki cod next to the bok choy and drizzle teriyaki sauce around the plate and over the fish. Sprinkle each serving with sliced scallions and sesame seeds. Serve.
