Grilled Cod with Brown Butter-Citrus-au Poivre Vinaigrette and Veggies

As you likely know by now, I have a love affair with Food Network and in particular, with Bobby Flay. As a lover of Mexican flavors, my taste buds dance with happiness. whenever I try one of his recipes.  Also, side note, I visited the beach yesterday, and whenever I go to the beach, I crave seafood.

So I decided to revisit an old flame (Bobby!) and find a seafood recipe from his extensive collection... and I found this gem.

It's got the perfect Florida flavors - fish and citrus!  So armed with my shopping list, I went to the store (Publix, of course), and started gathering ingredients. I went to the seafood counter, and saw that halibut was NOT on sale, and in fact, is pretty pricy... so, instead of giving up before I had even started, I asked the seafood counter guy what would be a good substitute that was less expensive.  He suggested cod, and let me tell you - bless you, knowledgeable kind man!!! The tag said this cod was wild caught from Iceland, and it was SO FRIGGIN FABULOUS.

I decided to pair my fish with freshly steamed green beans and pan-seared tomatoes, but you can also add carbs if you like - mashed potatoes would be great!

Here is how I made this easy, quick, fresh, and delicious Grilled cod with Brown Butter-Citrus-au Poivre Vinaigrette and Veggies!

1. Prep your ingredients. Zest your orange and lemon, juice your lemon and orange, chop your onion, finely dice your thyme, and finally, prep your fish by washing in water, drying thoroughly with a paper towel, brushing on both sides with olive oil (DO NOT SKIP THIS - SEE NOTE) and seasoning on both sides with salt and pepper.

2. Heat your pan to medium high/high.
3. Start making your sauce. Plop 2 TBSPs of butter and the chopped onion in a medium pot at medium heat. Cook for about 3 minutes until the onion softens, and make sure to stir often.

 
4. Around this time, you can start steaming your green beans (I just did mine in the microwave) for about 6 minutes.

5. Start cooking the fish. The pan should be hot so that when you place the fish down, it sizzles.  Don't move the fish until it's time to flip (after 2-3 minutes), as this will help ensure the fish gets nice and brown.  Flip and let the other side cook for another 2 minutes.  I also cooked the sliced tomatoes in the same pan, and pan seared them for about 2-3 minutes on each side as well until they got a bit brown.

6. While fish is cooking, finish off the sauce by adding the remaining butter and swirl the pot. You want the butter to cook until it gets a nut brown color, similar to the below...

 .. And then add the orange and lemon juice and zest, as well as the thyme, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and salt to taste.

 7. Add green beans, tomatoes, and fish to a plate, and top with 2-3 TBSP of the citrus sauce, and sprinkle with extra zest and chopped thyme.  Serve!

Note: I try to eliminate calories sometimes by using Pam spray versus olive oil.  DO NOT DO THAT WHEN COOKING FISH IN A PAN.  You will end up with the browned crust sticking to the pan, and not to the fish, which is super disappointing (see below):

Sad fish cooked with spray. Don't be like Kim!  Use Olive Oil instead!

Luckily, I was cooking four pieces of fish, two at a time, and so I learned the lesson on the first two, but was able to make a gorgeous plate for the second two (and in a new pan!)

Click here for a printable version of the recipe, or continue reading!

Grilled Cod with Brown Butter-Citrus-au Poivre Vinaigrette and Veggies
Slightly  Adapted from Bobby Flay  

Ingredients

·       Four 6-ounce cod fillets

·       2 tablespoons olive oil

·       1 stick (8 tablespoons) unsalted butter, cut into pieces

·       ½ white onion, diced

·       1 orange

·       1 lemon

·       1 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme, plus sprigs for garnish

·       2 cups of green beans, trimmed

·       4-6 Campari or Roma tomatoes, sliced into rounds

Directions

1. Prep your ingredients. Zest your orange and lemon (about 1 TBSP zest for each), juice your lemon and orange, dice your onion, finely chop your thyme, and finally, prep your fish by washing in water, drying thoroughly with a paper towel, brushing on both sides with olive oil and seasoning on both sides with salt and pepper.

2. Heat your pan to medium high/high.

3. Start making your sauce. Plop 2 TBSPs of butter and the chopped onion in a medium pot at medium heat. Cook for about 3 minutes until the onion softens, and make sure to stir often. 

4. Around this time, you can start steaming your green beans (I just did mine in the microwave) for about 6 minutes.

5. Start cooking the fish. The pan should be hot so that when you place the fish down, it sizzles.  Don't move the fish until it's time to flip (after 2-3 minutes), as this will help ensure the fish gets nice and brown.  Flip and let the other side cook for another 2 minutes.  I also cooked the tomatoes in the same pan, and pan seared them for about 2-3 minutes on each side as well until they got a bit brown.

6. While fish is cooking, finish off the sauce by adding the remaining butter and swirl the pot. You want the butter to cook until it gets a nut brown color, and then add the orange and lemon juice and zest, as well as the thyme, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper and salt to taste.

 7. Add green beans, tomatoes, and fish to a plate, and top with 2-3 TBSP of the citrus sauce, and sprinkle with extra zest and chopped thyme.  Serve!

Note:

I try to eliminate calories sometimes by using Pam spray versus olive oil.  DO NOT DO THAT WHEN COOKING FISH IN A PAN.  You will end up with the browned crust sticking to the pan, and not to the fish, which is disappointing.