To Boil Halibut
Ingredients
Directions
Prepare
Place the halibut in a fish kettle with the back side down.
Cover the fish with cold water and dissolve the salt and saltpetre in it.
Cook
Bring the water to a boil, skimming it carefully.
Reduce the heat and let it simmer until cooked, about 30 minutes.
Serve
Drain the fish and garnish with horseradish.
Serve with egg sauce or melted butter.
Transcribed from a scanned cookbook and modernised for today's kitchens. Where the book gave no heat or time, or said "a moderate oven", the temperatures and times here may be modern equivalents rather than the book's own figures.
Explore the science
What each ingredient does
- Halibut
- Is the main protein that is cooked gently in the simmering brine.
- Coarse sea salt
- Seasons the fish and firms its flesh as it dissolves into the cooking water.
- Saltpetre
- Helps the fish keep a firm texture and a pink colour, as an optional curing agent.
The step that matters
Reduce the heat and let it simmer until cooked. At a hard boil the delicate fish flesh breaks apart and turns tough and dry. A gentle simmer cooks it evenly and keeps it moist and tender.
“What each ingredient does” and “The step that matters” were written by Claude from this recipe’s own method and reviewed in samples by CompKitchen.
You might also like
Tomato Soup526 recipes
Brown Bread461 recipes
Mutton Broth292 recipes
Yorkshire Pudding264 recipesThe free Flavor Lab newsletter: one surprising pairing a week and the molecular reason it works, in 60 seconds. No spam, unsubscribe anytime.
Prefer an account? Create a free account to save pairings and unlock the full chemistry.