Poached Halibut with Pistachio Soup

Description

Poached Halibut with Pistachio Soup by Chef Gerald Hirigoyen.

Ingredients

Warm Pistachio Soup:

• 2 tablespoons / 30 ml olive oil
• 2⁄3 cup / 75 g onion, chopped
• 2 springs fresh thyme, chopped
• 1 each garlic clove
• ½ cup / 80 g pistachios, whole
• 4¼ cup / 1000 ml chicken broth
• Salt as needed
• Pepper as needed

Garnish:

• ¼ cup / 60 ml olive oil
• 1 cup / 120 g onion, diced
• ½ cup / 120 g butternut squash, peeled and diced
• 1⅓ cups / 120 g fennel, sliced
• ¾ cup / 120 g celery root, diced
• 2 2/3 cups / 120 g carrots, peeled and thickly sliced
• 2 cups, 1 tablespoon / 500 ml white wine
• 1 cup / 250 ml chicken stock
• Salt as needed
• Pepper as needed

Pistachio Pesto Topping: 

• 15 basil leaves
• 1 garlic clove, whole
• 2 tablespoons / 20 g potato, cooked
• ⅓ cup / 50 g pistachios, whole
• ½ cup / 100 ml extra virgin olive oil
• ½ lemon, juiced
• Salt as needed
• Pepper as needed

Assembly:

• 1 pound / 500 g halibut filet, cut into cubes
• Salt as needed
• Pepper as needed
• Extra virgin olive oil as needed

Instructions

Warm Pistachio Soup:

1. In a large saucepan on medium heat, combine olive oil, onion, thyme, garlic, and pistachio kernels. Sauté for about five minutes, or until golden brown. Add chicken broth and bring to a boil. Simmer for about twenty minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste.
2. When finished, pour saucepan contents into a blender and mix on high. Strain through a small sieve and set aside.

Garnish:

1. In a large sauté pan, on medium heat, combine olive oil, onion, butternut squash, fennel, celery root, and carrots. Sauté for about five minutes, adding salt and pepper to taste.
2. Add white wine and bring to a boil until all the liquid is gone. When the liquid has evaporated, add the chicken broth and continue to boil until all the liquid is gone and the vegetables are cooked through. Set aside.

Pistachio Pesto Topping:

1. Combine basil, garlic, potato, pistachio kernels, and salt in a mortar and mash it together. When it starts to break down a bit, gradually add the olive oil and continue to mash it all together.
2. After it has been mixed well, add the lemon juice and mix together. Set aside.

Assembly:

1. Add salt and pepper to the halibut cubes and sauté in a medium sized sauté pan on medium high for about two minutes on each side, or until golden brown.
2. Place a towel on a plate, and when fish is golden brown, pour the cooked fish on top of the towel (to remove excess oil).
3. In a separate shallow bowl, pour in some of the hot pistachio soup with a ladle, add vegetables on top, and place about five or six cubes of halibut on top of the vegetables.
4. Sprinkle the pistachio pesto topping over the soup and finish with some extra virgin olive oil over the dish.