Monday, June 21, 2010

The egg and the fish.

Anyone who knows me knows that I love mixing my proteins.  Chicken and tofu in a Thai curry.  Eggs on cheesy garlic grits.  Surf and turf.  A menagerie of animals in a bolognese sauce.  My latest favorite combination of proteins: fish and eggs.

On Saturday evening, in the middle of a hot summer weekend filled with 5 hours of biking and attendance at a smattering of lively local festivals, we had dinner with Dr. Ku and Mike.  Dinners with Ku and Mike have become a pleasantly regular occurrence, switching between the Ku and Rose residences, occasionally intermingled with dim sum, Ethiopian, or other ethnic fare.  But on this busy weekend, there was no time to get elaborate.  I went to my simple go-to.


Seafood Landing had a large selection on Saturday morning.  I had in mind some fillets with the skin still on, so they would get crispy when broiled.  The barramundi looked the best, though I would have preferred little fillets of trout or John Dory.  I parboiled and grilled scallions, shaved parmesan reggiano, mixed a mustard vinagrette and soft-boiled an egg to  garnish the plate before I laid down the broiled barramundi, which I finished with a pinch of Maldon salt.

Thankfully, Ku and Mike were able to appreciate this combination of proteins.  It shouldn't have been hard to appreciate, since the plate was lovely and I didn't get too creative with the egg... unlike the egg from the red wine-poached egg on butter-poached halibut that I photographed for a certain casting call (I poached it in white wine when I showed up for the actual casting call... the egg comes out in a barely yellowish hue, a much more palatable color for an egg than the purpleish blob that comes out of a red wine poach).  That was no less delicious, but admittedly, the color in the photograph was a little off-putting.

Nonetheless, there's nothing quite like a juicy piece of fish paired with a perfectly cooked egg.   It's a more delicate kind of surf and turf.  Unlike the brute force of a slab of beef wrestling against a lobster tail for dominance, the fish and egg nestle in harmony on a plate.  When fruit of the mighty sea comes to the shore and meets with the humble and earthy egg, you end up with something light, yet fulfilling, and perfect for a busy summer evening.

2 comments:

  1. What about the egg you plated perfectly in the shell? Admit it, you are an egg master! :)

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yes, I think I deserved a pleat in my toque for that one!

    ReplyDelete

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