Pan fried halibut with kiwi berry salsa

Kiwi berries….something I’d never even heard of let alone cooked with until last week when Ulysses brought them home from the store proclaiming he was trying to “broaden the culinary horizons of my blog readers”. Isn’t he so thoughtful?

So this post is a family effort. I kind of felt like I was on Chopped or something being handed some obscure ingredient I’ve never seen and basically being forced to do something with it and share it with the “judges (that’d be you guys).

First rule of Chopped…if you’ve never seen it before, taste it!

How many competitors have you seen forget this?! As if those judges weren’t harsh enough, you best be tasting that damn unknown food just to show them you did! Otherwise, no matter how delicious of a plate you put in front of them, they’ll tear it apart just because they think you’re an idiot.

So I tasted them.

And guess what? They taste exactly like a regular kiwi. Kind of anticlimactic actually. They do have one BIG thing going for them though vs. the normal kiwi. No fuzz. I hate the damn fuzz. In Italy, the only fresh fruit we were served for breakfast for 2 weeks straight were severely unripe kiwis that I’d try (mostly unsuccessfully) to butcher apart from their fuzz with a butter knife every morning. So the fuzz hatred is recent and strong. These no fuzz taste-a-likes were therefore immediately ahead of the game.

Here’s where the reality show and life differ. Instead of racing towards some amazingly stocked pantry shelves, grabbing everything in sight just so the other contestants don’t take it first, I opened my fridge, saw the halibut I had intended to cook the night before but didn’t and this dish pretty much became a done deal. A slightly less dramatic and exciting process.

If I could afford halibut in all it’s $19.99/lb glory every day, I think I’d be quite content eating it for the rest of my life. It’s like the steak of fish. I don’t know why they compare swordfish to steak all the time because that always tastes distinctly fishy to me. Halibut is not. It’s thick, buttery and practically screams to be lightly coated in flour and pan fried. Don’t fight the screams, just do it. Then top it with a non-fuzzy kiwi salsa.

Bam.

You won’t be on the chopping block.

5.0 from 1 reviews

Pan fried halibut with kiwi berry salsa

 

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Prep time

10 mins

Cook time

5 mins

Total time

15 mins

 

A simply prepared halibut steak topped with a sweet & tart kiwi salsa.

Author: Gina Matsoukas

Recipe type: fish, halibut

Serves: 2

Ingredients

For the fish

• 2 6 oz. halibut filets
• 2 tablespoons flour (I used whole wheat)
• 2-3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
• salt & pepper

For the salsa

• 6 oz. kiwi berries, sliced in half
• ½ avocado, cut into cubes
• 1 tablespoon red onion, minced
• 1 tablespoon cilantro, chopped
• juice of ½ a lime
• ½ tablespoon honey
• salt & pepper

Instructions

For the fish

1. Season both filets with salt & pepper.
2. Place flour in a small, shallow dish.
3. Coat each fillet in flour on all sides, set aside.
4. Bring a medium skillet to med-high heat with olive oil in it.
5. Once hot, place halibut in pan and “fry” on each side for 2-3 minutes until cooked through.

For the salsa

1. Combine kiwis, avocado, red onion and cilantro in a small bowl.
2. Whisk together lime juice, honey, salt & pepper in another small bowl and pour over salsa.
3. Toss gently to combine.
4. Top cooked fish with salsa and serve immediately.

Notes

If you can’t find kiwi berries, substitute regular kiwis. They taste exactly the same.

3.1.08

Tagged as: fish, halibut, kiwi, salsa