Today I present a quick and easy recipe to prepare based on steamed cod. To flavor the cod during steaming, I use aromatic herbs that enhance the taste.
Cod pairs well with many vegetables (pumpkin, turnip greens, lentils, celeriac, cherry tomatoes, Jerusalem artichokes) I thought of preparing a chickpea puree because it’s quick to make and pairs well with parsley cream.
If you like cod, don’t forget to read the recipe
- Difficulty: Very easy
- Cost: Medium
- Rest time: 2 Minutes
- Preparation time: 10 Minutes
- Portions: 2
- Cooking methods: Steam
- Cuisine: Italian
- Seasonality: All seasons
- Energy 487.28 (Kcal)
- Carbohydrates 29.68 (g) of which sugars 2.61 (g)
- Proteins 66.45 (g)
- Fat 9.86 (g) of which saturated 1.19 (g)of which unsaturated 1.36 (g)
- Fibers 9.29 (g)
- Sodium 6,570.82 (mg)
Indicative values for a portion of 300 g processed in an automated way starting from the nutritional information available on the CREA* and FoodData Central** databases. It is not food and / or nutritional advice.
* CREATES Food and Nutrition Research Center: https://www.crea.gov.it/alimenti-e-nutrizione https://www.alimentinutrizione.it ** U.S. Department of Agriculture, Agricultural Research Service. FoodData Central, 2019. https://fdc.nal.usda.gov
Ingredients for 2 people:
- 6.35 oz cod
- 7.05 oz cooked, boiled chickpeas
- 5.29 oz parsley
- 1 white potato
- to taste salt
- to taste extra virgin olive oil
- to taste aromatic herbs (thyme, oregano, marjoram)
Tools:
- 1 Blender / Mixer
- 1 Strainer
- 1 Steamer
- 1 Plastic bottle with dosing spout
Procedure
For this recipe, you can also use dried chickpeas, follow the directions on the package and cook them. Usually, dried chickpeas need to soak for about 12 hours and then be cooked for 70 minutes over low heat (changing water, do not use the soaking water).
Alternatively, take good quality cooked chickpeas already pureed, this way you will significantly reduce the procedure. For an autumn version, you can replace the chickpeas with lentils, read here on how to cook them.
Take the cooked chickpeas and put them in the blender/mixer cup, set to medium speed, and blend until you get a thick but liquid cream (velvety).
If the mixer/blender is not very powerful, pass the puree through a strainer to make it creamy and velvety, removing any residue.
Adjust with salt and pepper to add flavor.
Place the cod fillet in the steamer to cook for 8 minutes at 212°F, if you place the cod fillet in a pre-heated steamer, it only takes 5-6 minutes.
To flavor the steamed cod with aromatic herbs, I use thyme, oregano, marjoram, and lime zest (peel without the white part). Just a pinch on the top of the fillet is enough.
While the desalted cod is steaming, we focus on the parsley cream (read the full recipe here).
Blend the blanched parsley in water for 5 minutes and blend it with 1 boiled potato, if necessary, add water and extra virgin olive oil to achieve a creamy and thick consistency (it must hold its shape and not crumble)
At this point, the ingredients are ready, all that’s left is to plate! You can do it in various ways, here’s how I did it.
Place the chickpea puree at the base of the plate to create a mirror and draw parallel lines on the chickpea puree and the game is done. To create precise lines, use a kitchen dispenser/bottle.
Complete the dish by placing the steamed cod fillet in the center of the plate and whole chickpeas with edible leaves/spices such as basil, thyme, oregano, cress, or mustard leaves; you can use the leaves to add flavor according to the season (I recommend using them fresh and not dried).
Your steamed cod with chickpea puree and parsley cream is ready!
Plating Tips:
You can also present the cod with chickpea puree and parsley cream. In this case, you just need to add less water to the puree to get a dense cream to be placed in spoonfuls.
Wine Pairing for Steamed Cod:
To enhance the dish, I recommend serving the cod with a dry white wine. For example, an Etna Bianco Doc or a Vermentino di Gallura.
