I sometimes spend hours writing and formulating recipes and then never publish them. There is no reason I need to but I often pull inspiration from others, so maybe someone out there can pull from the things I’ve tried. I also don’t claim to be very good at coming up with these dishes, but they do generally turn out pretty good. And I just like trying new things.

The thing to note about this dish is that while the fish is in the cooker you can make the risotto and the timing lines up pretty well.

Sous-vide Paprika and Juniper Halibut or White Fish

Season Fillets

Do this up to an hour before cooking. Once fillets are seasoned, seal and put in fridge until ready to use.

• Salt
• Pepper
• Sweet Smoky Paprika
• Ground Juniper

Heat Precision Cooker to 140ºF about 20 minutes before use (depends on water container size)

In Precision Cooker Bag

• 2-4 fillets of seasoned Halibut or White Fish – two per bag
• 2 tbsp butter per bag
• Lemon Zest
• Seal and remove all air from the bag

Cook fish for 30-45 minutes depending on thickness of fillets.

Finishing Cooking Process

• Remove from pot and pat dry with paper towel
• Heat skillet to med-high heat with more butter
• Brown presentation side of fish for 30-45 seconds in pan
• Remove skin
• Serve immediately
• Plate with Morel Risotto

Spruce Tip Morel Risotto

• 900ml vegetable stock
• 2-3 cups water
• 2 tablespoon butter
• 1 cup minced shallot, leek or onion
• 2 garlic cloves, minced
• 2 cups risotto rice
• 1-2 ounce dried morels
• Salt
• 2 tablespoons chopped chives or parsley
• 1/2 cup grated pecorino or parmesan cheese

Instructions

Pour boiling water over dried morels in a bowl and let sit for about 30-minutes. Clean morels in water once steeped. Remove hydrated morels and reserve and filter the morel water for later use.

Pour the stock and 2 cups of morel water into a pot and bring it to a gentle simmer.

In another pot or pan, heat the butter over medium-high heat – at this point, I also added some dried spruce tips to start infusing into the butter – and saute the minced shallots until they soften and turn translucent. Add the garlic cloves, the morels, more spruce tips and the rice and mix well. Cook for 3-4 minutes, stirring often.

When the liquid from the morels has evaporated, add 1/2 cup of hot stock to the rice and stir well. I didn’t particularly measure out 1/2 cup but used a ladle throughout the whole process. Sprinkle a little salt over everything. With risotto, you have to constantly stir the rice as it absorbs the liquid as to ensure everything is evenly cooking and not burning to the pan. As each scope of stock is absorbed, add another, then another until the rice is cooked through, but still firm.

When you reach that point, add the grated cheese and a little more stock. Stir to incorporate the cheese into the risotto. Once ready, remove from heat.

Plating

On a clean plate scope, a small bit of risotto into the middle and with a knife or spoon shape it into a circle. Sprinkle with leftover juniper and paprika spice mix. Place a cut of fish on top of the risotto. Then add a garnish of parsley or chives. I happened to have pickled baby onions, which added a weird pop of colour. It needed something green.

Inspiration came from here: http://honest-food.net/2012/06/10/morel-risotto-recipe/