Rosie’s Recipes: Don’t miss the miso!!!!

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Rosie’s Recipes: Don’t miss the miso!!!!

By Rosie Hawthorne on October 16, 2020

(Rosie Hawthorne)

My son came home the other day with a mess o’ mahi mahi and I’m one happy Mama. There are so many ways to prepare mahi – one can bake it, grill it, blacken it, sauté it, fry it, and I’ve done them all. Today, I’m taking the fillets and marinating them in a miso paste-based sauce, then reducing the marinade and using it as a flavor-enhancing glaze for the sautéed fillets. Add a few sides, say some wild rice and a stir-fried vegetable mix, and you’ve got quite a palatable meal.

In case you’re not familiar with the Japanese staple miso paste, it’s a thick, savory paste made from fermented soy beans. The soybeans are inoculated with a type of mold, called koji (which is also used to make sake) and blended with other grains, then it’s allowed to ferment. The longer the fermentation, the darker the paste and the more complex the flavor. Miso gives you a boost of sapidity, namely that fifth basic taste component, along with sweet, sour, salty, and bitter, called umami. Umami is salty, earthy, rich, intense, multi-dimensional, and kinda funky. Basically, it’s what makes your mouth water.

Now, on to some mouth-watering mahi mahi.

Mahi Mahi With Miso Glaze

2 TB miso paste
1 TB mirin
1 TB soy sauce
2 TB sake (You could substitute sherry or white wine if you don’t have sake on hand.)
1 TB brown sugar
2 large garlic cloves, minced or pressed
3 1-inch cubes of ginger, juiced and minced or pressed
Zest and juice of one lime and one lemon
1 tsp red pepper flakes

Combine all ingredients. For the ginger, I buy whole roots, then slice into 1-inch cubes, and freeze. Whenever a recipe calls for ginger, I nuke the cubes for about 20 seconds, then I can squeeze by hand to release the juice. You can either mince the pulp or use a garlic press. Pour the marinade into a ziplock bag.

4 mahi mahi fillets, bloodlines removed
Add the fish to the marinade, turning to coat. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours.

Heat a large skillet over medium high heat and film it very lightly with peanut oil and a tablespoon of butter. The butter is for flavor; the peanut oil is to reduce the smoke point of the butter. Remove fish fillets from bag and shake off excess marinade, saving the marinade. Add the fish to the hot oil and cook about 2-3 minutes each side until done. (It will easily flake with a fork.) Place fish on warm serving platter and cover. Pour the reserved marinade into the pan, heat until bubbly, and cook until reduced by about half. Pour over top of the mahi mahi fillets and add a sprinkling of sliced scallions.

(Rosie Hawthorne)

I served the glazed mahi mahi with a side of wild rice and a quick stir fry of bok choy, mushrooms, onions, garlic, and sesame seeds. Rosie Note: If you don’t have mahi, this marinade would work equally well with pork or chicken. Enjoy!