Seared Opah (Moonfish) With Vine-Ripe Tomato Garlic Butter

lazyme's Note:

It's my understanding that Opah isn't easy to come by, so I was thrilled when I found some. Then I discovered that there are not many recipes out on the internet, so recipes are also hard to come by. I found this one and we loved both the fish and the recipe. I also had to search for a recipe for the Tomato Concasse, so included it here for convenience. Just as a note, I didn't use nearly as much butter as the recipe calls for. From Chef Linda Yamada of the Beach House in Hawaii.

• Total Time: 40 mins
• Prep Time: 10 mins
• Cook Time: 30 mins

Ingredients:

Servings: 4

• 1 lb opah fillet , cut into 3-ounce fillets
• olive oil
• 2 tablespoons garlic , finely minced
• 1 tablespoon lemon juice
• 3 tablespoons white wine
• 2 tablespoons parsley , chopped (2 to 3)
• 1 lb unsalted butter , cut into cubes, room temperature
• salt and pepper , to taste
• parmesan cheese , shredded

Tomato Concasse

• 1 lb tomato , vine-ripened
• 2 shallots , minced
• 4 tablespoons unsalted butter

Directions:

1. Make the Tomato Concasse: (The French word means to roughly chop).
2. Remove the core of the tomato with the tip of a small knife.
3. At the other end, lightly score (just break the skin) of the tomato by cutting an X.
4. Plunge the tomatoes into a pot of rapidly boiling water for 10 seconds (blanch).
5. Remove the tomatoes with a slotted spoon and place into a bowl of ice water or under cold running water to halt the cooking process (this process is called 'refreshing').
6. The peel should now just slip off; if the tomatoes are not quite ripe, they may need to be blanched and refreshed again.
7. Place the tomatoes on a cutting board with the core side down and cut in half.
8. Remove the seeds with a teaspoon and discard.
9. Roughly chop the tomatoes to the desired size.
10. Gently cook the shallots and the tomatoes in butter without coloring them (this is called sweating) for 5 minutes and set aside until required.
11. For the Fish:.
12. Heat the saute pan on medium heat until hot.
13. Add in oil; season both sides of fillets with salt and pepper.
14. Sear on both sides until medium done, approximately 4 - 5 minutes total depending on thickness of fish.
15. Remove from pan; add garlic; stir consistently.
16. Add tomato concasse, lemon juice and white wine on medium heat; let reduce until most liquid is gone.
17. On low heat, add in butter a little at a time.
18. Remove from heat; add in chopped parsley and season.

Reviews

[Maui Mama]

I have made this twice...once for my family and then for guests. I followed the recipe exactly except that I used about 2T of butter in the concasse and about 1T at the end, and it was great. My husband says it tastes like a restaurant meal...and it's a simple to make recipe. Gotta love that!

[Chef #909700]

This recipe is fabulous. I was afraid it would be too garlicky so I didn't put quite as much in as it called for, but I wish I had! Also, it's true that you don't need NEARLY as much butter as it says. I used about 2 tbsp in the concasse and then 4 tbsp at the end, and it was great.