Tuesday 2 June 2020

NOBU STYLE MISO GLAZED COD WITH MISO UDON BROTH




 I've always wanted to try my hand at making miso cod, one of those fancy dishes with a usually matching price tag you tend to find high up the menu at elevated Japanese dining establishments.

After all Robert Di Niro owned luxury sushi restaurant chain, Nobu, made miso cod a "thing", ordered by celebrities and wannabes en masse, which I guess is why so far my purse had not quite got around to ordering it.

I am a massive miso fan though, indeed I am still not quite over how amazing my Cremé inspired white chocolate miso cookies turned out the other week, and after a bit of online research I actually found THE Nobu recipe and surprisingly it wasn't even that hard to master at home!

Ok, I didn't find black cod, normal cod did the trick, and you do have to make sure you marinade the fish for 2-3 days in the fridge, but with a bit of planning ahead the end result here was total dreamy! Buttery, silky fish, FULL of flavour, I guess you can kind of see why people pay so much for this on a restaurant menu!

Continuing the miso theme, I served the cod on super easy but wonderfully fragrant white miso broth which was filled with shitake mushrooms. some other veg as well as udon noodles. Altogether this was a totally dreamy, quite fancy AND healthy, perfect for a warm spring evening - no fancy Japanese restaurant needed!

Serves 4

NOBU STYLE MISO GLAZED COD

INGREDIENTS
  • 1/4 cup sake
  • 1/4 cup mirin
  • 4 tablespoons white miso paste
  • 3 tablespoons sugar
  • 4 cod fillets
METHOD
  • 2 to 3 days beforehand, make the miso marinade and marinate the fish. 
  • For the marinade bring the sake and mirin to a boil in a medium saucepan over high heat. 
  • Boil for 20 seconds to evaporate the alcohol. 
  • Turn the heat down to low, add the miso paste, and whisk. 
  • When the miso has dissolved completely, turn the heat up to high again and add the sugar, whisking constantly to ensure that the sugar doesn't burn on the bottom of the pan. 
  • Remove from heat once the sugar is fully dissolved. 
  • Cool to room temperature.
  • Pat the  cod fillets thoroughly dry with paper towels. 
  • Slather the fish with the miso marinade and place in a non-reactive dish or bowl and cover tightly with plastic wrap. 
  • Leave to marinate in the refrigerator for 2 to 3 days.
  • To cook the fish: Preheat oven to 200 celsius. 
  • Heat an oven-proof saucepan over high heat on the hob. 
  • Lightly wipe off any excess miso clinging to the fillets, but don't rinse it off. 
  • Film the pan with a little oil, then place the fish skin-side-up on the pan and cook until the bottom of the fish browns and blackens in spots, about 3 minutes. 
  • Flip and continue cooking until the other side is browned, 2 to 3 minutes. 
  • Transfer to the oven and bake for 5 to 10 minutes, until fish is opaque and flakes easily.

MISO UDON BROTH WITH SHITAKE MUSHROOMS & BROCCOLI 

INGREDIENTS
  • 3 Tbs. white miso
  • 1/2 cup hote water
  • 2-3 Tbs. sesame oil plus 1 more Tbs. reserved for broth
  • 2-3 Tbs. vegetable oil
  • 8 oz. Shitake mushrooms
  • 2 spring onions, chopped, white/light green divided from dark green
  • Bunch of long sprouting broccoli
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 1 Tbs. ginger, minced
  • 1/2 tsp. salt
  • 3 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 Tbs. soy sauce
  • 1 Tbs. mirin
  • 1/2 Tbs. rice vinegar
  • 4 packs of instant udon noodles

METHOD
  • Place miso paste in a small bowl and add 1/2 cup hot water, stir to dissolve and set aside.
  • Heat a deep, flat bottomed saucepan over medium heat for 2 minutes. 
  • Add equal amounts of vegetable and sesame oils. 
  • Allow to heat 1 minute, before smoking. 
  • Sauté mushrooms for about 5 minutes. 
  • Add in white and light green parts of scallions and stir to combine for 1-2 minutes.
  • Add minced garlic and ginger, sauté with the vegetables for 1 minute. 
  • Add salt and finally, add the broccoli and stir to combine for 1 minute.
  • Add bowl of miso broth to the vegetables and bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer 
  • Add vegetable stock, soy sauce, Mirin, rice vinegar and sesame oil. 
  • Simmer for 5 minutes. 
  • Taste it and add more salt and pepper if needed.
  • Add noodles to the broth and stir to combine. 

TO SERVE
  • Serve soup in a bowl, place a fillet of cod on top and sprinkle with the reserved chopped green scallions.

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