Cod with Herbed Yogurt

July 16 - I recently finished reading Anthony Bourdain’s first memoir, Kitchen Confidential, and I learned so many things about the restaurant industry and cooking in general. It’s no wonder this book led him to such success, as it’s not only a fun read, but is just full of stories and tips that ultimately get eaten up by food-obsessed people like myself. One of Bourdain’s tips for impressive cooking, is the use of shallots. It was something so simple and surprising to me, but today’s recipe backed him up on it for sure.

Today’s recipe was another for cod (from NYT Cooking as well), with a yogurt sauce. The cod was to be cooked in a covered skillet, gaining flavor from shallots, butter, and wine, making a sauce that was thickened in the pan beforehand. I added thyme and shallots to the pan first, letting them cook in melted butter and olive oil, the shallots producing a gorgeous smell in the kitchen. Once they were softened, I added wine, a dry white like the recipe called for. I used a dry Riesling, but Pinot Grigio, Sauvignon Blanc, or Chardonnay would work well, too. The wine sauce slightly thickened, I finally added the cod, and left it to cook, covered, for a few minutes. The smell of the shallots, both before and after wine was added, was just so good, and I was too excited to taste them with the fish.

The final touch to bring everything together was preparing the herbed yogurt sauce. A quick mix of yogurt, dill, garlic, and some salt and pepper, and boom, good to go. It tasted similar to the soup we made a few weeks ago, a cool and refreshing sauce that goes perfectly with fish.

Along with the cod, we decided to remake Alice Waters’ glazed carrot recipe (seriously, try them, they’re amazing) and to steam broccoli. Not forgoing carbs, we also grabbed a hearty poppy seed bread from the store in order to fully complete the meal. All in all, this was a really successful recipe. I think if I had to choose, I like this cod recipe better than the one I made earlier in the summer, especially since the yogurt sauce makes it more suitable to a hot summer day.

Try out this meal for a quick weeknight summer dinner, and feel free to mix and match with different veggies or starches for sides. Oh, and add shallots to more skillet-cooked meals. I’m telling you, Anthony Bourdain knew a thing or two.

#cooking #carrots #cod #fish #cherrytable #recipe