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Seared Halibut with Couscous

Searing is done over high heat and works best in an uncoated fry pan, such as cast iron or stainless steel. Manufacturers of nonstick pans generally advise against cooking over high heat. If you use a nonstick pan, keep the heat level at medium-high, cook for a few minutes more than directed in the recipe and don’t expect as much of a seared effect.

By williamssonoma · From Open Recipes · 11 ingredients
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Seared Halibut with Couscous

Why it works: Cumin and ginger match in chemistry and in kitchens. They rank in the top 2% of all ingredient pairs, and cooks put them together in 1,733 recipes. Both carry estragole, which smells anise, licorice. The science ↓

Seared Halibut with Couscous

Serves 4.

Ingredients

Directions

Step-by-step directions aren't available for this recipe. See the full recipe at the source →

Nutrition, whole recipe (rough)

467Calories
34 gProtein
18 gFat
43 gCarbs

Counts 9 of 10 ingredients. The other 1 aren't in our nutrition table and add nothing above, so the real totals are higher.

What these numbers assume: 9 portions
IngredientPortion assumedkcal
Couscous1 cup cooked (157g)176
Halibut100g cooked140
Olive Oil1 tbsp (14g)119
Lemonjuice of 1 lemon (48ml)12
Cumin1 tsp ground (2.1g)8
Black Pepper1 tsp ground (2.3g)6
Olive1 large (4g)4
Ginger1 tsp grated fresh (2g)2
Salt1 tsp (6g)0
Waternot in our table0

One typical portion per ingredient; the recipe's quantities are not counted. A rough guide only, not for medical or dietary planning.

By williamssonoma. Recipe from Open Recipes.

Explore the science

The flavor team

The pairs that carry this dish. Each one is judged two ways: how much their aromas overlap, and how often cooks already put them together.

  1. Cumin + gingertop 2% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together1,733 recipes

    Shared aroma: estragole (anise, licorice).

  2. Pepper + lemontop 3% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together27,047 recipes

    Shared aroma: trans-2-nonenal (cardboard, fatty).

  3. Lemon + gingertop 5% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together5,154 recipes

    Shared aroma: beta-phellandrene (minty, terpene).

  4. Cumin + olivetop 6% of all pairs
    Smell alikemoderate
    Cooked together4,853 recipes

    Shared aroma: eucalyptol (eucalyptus, herbal).

  5. Pepper + cumintop 7% of all pairs
    Smell alikestrong
    Cooked together4,382 recipes

    Shared aroma: methyl cinnamate (strawberry).

Ranks compare each pair with 20,000 random ingredient pairs on CompKitchen. How we score pairs

Swap the ginger

How well each one fits the dish's main ingredients (pepper, cumin, lemon, olive):

  1. Corianderfits better
  2. Oreganofits better
  3. Turmericfits better
  4. Gingerthe original

Fit is the average pairing score against pepper, cumin, lemon, olive. Candidates are from the same food group and used in at least 100 recipes.