Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock

Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock is a great recipe that keeps the meaty, flaky texture and flavor of the haddock and brings it to a whole new level with the base steaming sauce of red curry coconut and beautiful ripe tomatoes that gently infuse and cook the fish, absolutely a deliciously fragrant succulent dish.

Song of the day: "Look What I Found" by Big Wreck.

Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock is a beautiful Thai influenced dish hosting bold fresh and rich flavors and wonderful fillets of haddock that just simmer on the top of a brilliant sauce slowly taking in all the flavor profiles. In the Mediterranean way of eating fish is supposed to be two of the meals of the week, why not make this one of your picks for the week.

I would say that in my childhood years fish or any seafood was not on my favorites list. I didn't like the smell, texture, or taste of it. My mom and dad would prepare a fish stew with salted cod or baccalà as we call it in Italian, or a spaghetti with squid which I was afraid to eat as I thought those tentacles would stick to my throat and I would choke. My dad and mom would always say that I could not recognize good food and if a war would come I would eat anything as there would be a shortage of food. In Italian, the lecture would go something like this. (Tu non conosci la roba buona, viene la carestia e tu mangi tutto perché non c'è nient'altro). I never really understood what it all meant until I grew up and began to see poverty, films of war, and the lack of food. It was then that I started to come to the mentality of accepting the many foods including fish and always to be grateful that there was food on the table.

Today Nicoletta and I strive to have fish once a week and this week on our menu Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock.

I have to really confess here. I miss Italy so much as seafood and fish are so fresh it can be bought right after catching. I probably have said this before, but our first stop after landing in Rome is the fishmonger and we usually leave there with a full bag of goodies such as moscardini (baby squid), shrimp, clams, alici, mussels and some type of fish like rombo, or merluzzo.  Rome I am coming back real soon, fishmongers get ready.

This recipe is relatively easy, just a few ingredients such as:

• Fresh Haddock
• red curry paste
• cherry tomatoes
• shallots
• fresh basil
• coconut milk
• grated ginger
• lime juice

We live in the northwest prairie provinces of Canada which means seafood is not too available in our parts, but thanks to fishmongers like Ocean Odyssey they bring it in and we are the lucky ones to have it available. They are located in the west end of Edmonton, but also at the 104 street City Market which is where we purchased the fish. You all know by now how much Nicoletta and I enjoy marget going and especially in the summer being able to stroll the streets and experience so many great vendors and stands helping us stock our fridge for the week. By Friday the following week, the fridge starts to look quite bare and we are ready for another market run.

Today's pick for fish, of course, haddock, a real substantially meaty fish that if cooked right is purely delicious.

Let's take this beautiful fish we bought and get it all steamed up in our Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock!

To get things going we start with sauteing in vegetable oil the shallots till they get golden and crispy on the edges. The grated ginger and red curry paste go next. We used a cast iron pan as it holds a nice even heat and also can go in the oven when we are ready. When the red curry paste starts to stick to the pan you are ready for the next step. Oh, buy the way, red curry paste can be found in your local grocer usually in the ethnic food isle, or guaranteed fore sure to find it at an Asian market if you have one in your area. Wow, the aroma that is coming off the pan is amazing. The smoky spiciness of the paste is wonderful and we are going to seal those notes in with some coconut milk and cherry tomatoes, organic of course. I love when the curry and cocunt come together and always have to have a little taste to check for seasoning. Just some salt and pepper and we are good to go. The final touch, a little of the chopped fresh basil and we are ready to place the haddock on top after it has been salted and peppered, and into the oven it goes for a time. Talk about steaming, this is definitely a huge step up from normal water simmering steam. Think about all those deliciously rich spices and flavors subtly infusing into the flesh of the haddock. My mouh is watering at just those thoughts.

Look at the pictures above, does that sauce not look absolutely scrumptious? I bet you wish you could spoon some up and taste, lol. I love the contrast of the deep color of the sauce and the opaqueness of the fish. It looks beautiful, don't you agree?

OMG, I wish there was a smell vision, our kitchen is filled with the aroma of that tomato-coconut sauce. A little fresh basil and we are ready to serve this wonderful Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock.

A little finishing touch with a smidge of the sauteed shallots, some fresh chopped basil and a squeeze of lime juice. There you have it. You can serve this with rice if you want, today we chose an incredible shoot salad with a simple olive oil/lime dressing and I have to say it was a beautiful accompaniment to the haddock.

My oh my, the fish is just falling apart it is so tender. It is a good sign when you put your fork into the fish and those layers come apart beautifully revealing a most succulent and moist flesh. Add in the wonderful notes of that tomato-coconut sauce with the boldness yet not too spicy red curry which I have to say pairs so well with the coconut milk and the nicely stewed cherry tomatoes. Those welcome hits of fresh basil and that lime juice are so amazing and the haddock marries well with that sauce coming in on every mouthful.

We are at the start of a new week and you are doing your weekly meal plan. Give this amazing Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock a try and take on a more Mediterranean way of eating with an Asian twist.

Now, all we have to do is figure out a way to get the sea and climate here, that is for us who live in the mid northwest, lol.

Enjoy!

Song of the day: "Look What I Found" by Big Wreck.

Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock

★★★★★

5 from 2 reviews

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Tomato-Coconut Curry Steamed Haddock is a great recipe that keeps the meaty, flaky texture and flavor of the haddock and brings it to a whole new level with the base steaming sauce of red curry, coconut and beautiful ripe tomatoes that gently infuse and cook the fish, absolutely a deliciously fragrant dish.

• Total Time: 45 minutes
• Yield: 4 servings 1x

Ingredients

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• 2 -10 oz pieces Haddock
• ¼ cup veg oil
• 2 tsp sesame oil
• 2 shallots, chopped
• ¼ cup mild red curry paste
• 3 Tbsp grated ginger
• a handful of fresh basil, chopped
• 1 cup coconut milk
• 3 cups cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 Tbsp lime juice
• salt and pepper to taste

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Instructions

1. Pre-heat oven to 300° F.
2. In a medium cast iron pan heat up veg oil and toss in sliced shallots, and saute till golden and crispy on the edges about 3-5 minutes on med to high heat.
3. With a slotted spoon take shallots out of the pan and set on paper towel. Season with a sprinkle of sea salt.
4. In the cast iron pan with the oil from the shallots add sesame oil, grated ginger and red curry paste and stir until well incorporated and curry begins to stick to the pan.
5. Add in tomatoes, coconut milk, and a handful of chopped basil, and stir. Cook for about 6-8 minutes and you will see curry wanting to stick to the pan again, take off heat.
6. Season haddock with salt and pepper on both sides and place on top of the tomato curry mixture in the cast pan.
7. Place in the preheated oven and cook until fish is nice and opaque and the thickest part of the fish flakes apart when pierced with a paring knife, about 18-22 minutes.
8. Take out of the oven and serve with the sauce, a sprinkle of fresh basil, and sauteed shallots and a squeeze of lime juice on top.
9. Enjoy!

Notes

• If you do not have a cast iron pan, use an oven-safe dish to bake the sauce and fish.
• You can use cod or sablefish or any fish for that matter. If the fillets are quite thin adjust your cooking time.

• Author: Loreto
• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 35 minutes
• Category: Fish
• Method: steaming
• Cuisine: Fusion

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Loreto

When I am not cooking, I enjoy playing musical instruments, singing, writing. I have learned over the years to live in gratitude and enjoy the moment.