Olive Oil-Poached Cod with Herbed Potatoes, Capers, Lemon, and Nori

I love olive oil-poached fish, but it’s often not a technique I get to enjoy at home. In order to properly poach something in fat, it needs to be completely (or at least mostly) submerged. Which means I’d be using a lot of olive oil just for a single use. But by cooking your fish sous vide in oil, you’ll be able to enjoy the flavour and tenderness of the traditional cooking method while using a fraction of the olive oil! Since I had my Precision Cooker out, I decided to make my whole lunch sous vide. I started by cooking my potatoes while I prepared my fish and sauce, then while the fish cooked, I finished assembling the dish. This is such a quick and easy lunch with minimal setup, and it makes it easy for home cooks to cook like a professional chef at home.

Author

Sam Medeiros

Prep Time: 01:15

Recipe Time: 00:30

Temperature : 131F / 55C

Ingredients

• 500g small multicoloured potatoes
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and smashed
• 2 lemons
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• ¾ cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 (6-ounce) cod, halibut, or rockling fillets
• ⅓ cup roughly chopped fresh mint
• ¼ cup roughly chopped fresh dill
• 1 shallot, finely minced
• 2 tablespoons drained capers, roughly chopped
• 1 teaspoon aonori (finely ground nori)

Directions

1. Attach an Anova Precision Cooker to a vessel of water and heat to 190°F (87°C).
2. In a medium bowl, toss the potatoes with the garlic, peel of one of the lemons, salt, and pepper. Transfer to a vacuum seal bag with 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Seal, keeping the potatoes in a single layer.
3. Transfer to the water bath and cook for 1 hour.
4. Meanwhile, season the fish with salt. Slice half of the second lemon into thin rounds and place on the fillets. Place in a vacuum seal bag with ½ cup more olive oil.
5. Once the potatoes are cooked, remove from the water and lower the temperature of the Precision Cooker to 131°F (55°C). You can speed up this process by removing some of the hot water and replacing it with ice to help cool it down.
6. Once the water bath has reached your desired temperature, add in the fish. Cook for 30 minutes.
7. While the fish cooks, finish the dish. In a second medium bowl, mix together the mint, dill, shallot, capers, the juice of the peeled lemon, and the remaining ¼ cup olive oil. Remove 2 tablespoons of the mixture and reserve for serving.

Finishing Steps

1. Drain the potatoes and slice in half. Transfer to the bowl with the herb mixture. Toss well and season to taste with salt and pepper.
2. Once the cod is cooked, remove from the water and bag. Discard the lemon slices and carefully pat the fish dry. Peel off the skin. Slice the remaining lemon half into wedges.
3. Plate the potato salad with the poached cod on top. Garnish with the reserved herb mixture and aonori. Serve with the lemon wedges.