Cured Arctic Char

Fennel, Orange Bitters, Calabrian Chile Relish, Castelvetrano Olives

Chef Brittanny Anderson of Brenner Pass | Richmond, VA

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Adapted by StarChefs | november 2022

INGREDIENTS:

For the Arctic Char:
½ cup salt
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
3 tablespoon fennel fronds
Zest of 1 orange
¼ cup Angostura orange bitters
1 pound arctic char filet, skin removed, cut into 4-ounce portions

Calabrian Chile Relish:
1 cup Calabrian chiles, chopped
1 tablespoon preserved lemon
2 tablespoons capers
1 shallot, peeled
2 cloves garlic, peeled
2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
¼ cup olive oil

To Assemble and Serve:
1 tablespoon neutral oil
2 tablespoons Castelvetrano olives, pitted and sliced into rings
2 tablespoons fennel fronds

METHOD:

For the Arctic Char:
In a bowl, combine salt, fennel seeds, fennel fronds, zest, and bitters. In a baking dish, sprinkle a few tablespoons of the cure mixture into an even layer. Rub fish with remaining cure and place in baking dish. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate 2 hours. Remove fish from baking dish and rinse off remaining cure. Pat dry and set aside.

For the Calabrian Chile Relish:
In a food processor, pulse all ingredients until combined.

To Assemble and Serve:
In a saucepan over medium high flame, heat oil. Place Arctic Char flesh side down and cook until golden brown. Flip and cook other side until the internal temperature of the fish reaches 120°F. On a serving plate, spoon Calabrian Chile Relish in the center of the plate. Top with Arctic Char, and garnish with fennel fronds and olives.

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