thanksgiving inspired potato-crusted halibut with jammy cranberry tomato sauce

What you need

for the sauce

~1 cup fresh cranberries

~3 cups cherry tomatoes

~1 tbsp minced shallot

1 tsp apple cider vinegar

2 tbsp of sugar or honey

juice of one orange

big pinch of salt

for the fish

2 pounds halibut

2 idaho potatoes

clarified butter or ghee

salt & pep

equipment

mandolin

1/2 in-3/4 in round cutter

what you do

make the jammy cranberry sauce

start by making the jammy cranberry tomato sauce. add a drizzle of olive oil to a wide frying pan along with your shallots and cook for 2-3 mins until softened. add cranberries and tomatoes along with vinegar, sugar or honey, and salt. stir to coat, then cover and simmer for 5-8 mins until the cherry tomatoes begin to soften. remove cover and use a spatula to gently press down on the tomatoes and cranberries. stir in the fresh orange juice and continue to simmer uncovered on low heat for 4-5 min until the sauce has thickened and has a jammy consistency. remove from heat while fish is prepared.

portion halibut and assemble potato crust

portion halibut into half pound fillets (remove skin if it has not been removed already). set your mandolin to the thinnest setting and slice potatoes lengthwise. It’s very important to use the thinnest setting possible to properly create the potato crust. use round cutter to punch out rounds in the potato slices. If not assembling the potatoes scales immediately, store in water so they don’t oxidize and dry well before using.

cut four squares of parchment paper slightly larger than each fillet. brush parchment paper with some melted clarified butter or ghee, then tile the potato slices on the paper in an overlapping pattern. the potatoes should be arranged to fit the size of the fillet, and should not take up the entire parchment paper. brush potatoes with more clarified butter, season with salt and pepper, and then lay the fillet over the potatoes. season the fish with more salt and pepper.

cook the halibut

preheat oven to 200 degrees to keep fish warm while you cook in batches.

heat a spoonful of clarified butter or ghee in a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat. when hot, carefully transfer two of the fillets by lifting the parchment paper and placing potato side down directly on the pan (this ensures the tiled potatoes will stay perfectly arranged). cook for 5-7 mins, basting the edges of the potatoes with clarified butter, until golden brown. in the meantime, reheat jammy tomato cranberry sauce.

carefully flip the fillet and continue cooking until cooked through, 1-2 more minutes. transfer to a baking sheet, potato side up, and keep warm in the oven while you repeat and cook the other two fillets. when ready to serve, spoon the sauce directly over the fillets, or if you’d like to show off your gorgeous tiled potato crust, place the halibut directly on a heaping spoonful of the sauce. garnish with micro greens if you want to be fancy!