I am always looking for new flavor combinations to spice up my old favorites. Preserved lemons give a burst of salty brightness far more complex than just a squeeze of lemon and a bit of salt. They are worth the effort. The food writers have gone mad for Sriracha chili sauce, showing up everywhere – a combination of chili peppers, vinegar, garlic, sugar and salt. I have discovered flash frozen wild caught Cod with each filet vacuum sealed. They can be defrosted in cool water in minutes and so handy to keep in the freezer.
4 6 ounce skinless cod filets
1 tablespoon each of butter and olive oil
2 tablespoons fresh dill
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ cup dry white wine
1 pound Haricot Verts – French green beans
Preserved Lemon Sauce
½ cup mayonnaise
2 teaspoon Sriracha sauce – Thai chili sauce
2 tablespoons finely diced preserved lemon rinds
- Heat a large sauté then add the butter and olive oil
- Season the cod with salt and pepper and the dill and sauté about 1 minute on each side for thin filets, 2 per side for thicker
- Remove the filets to a warm platter and deglaze the pan with the white wine scraping up any brown bits and the dill, simmer about one minute then pour over the filets
- Serve with Haricot Verts green beans and top with the preserved lemon sauce
To boil the Haricot Verts
Bring at least 2 courts of water to a rapid boil, add 1 tablespoon of Kosher salt, add beans and time 5 minutes from the moment you put them in the water. Remove and serve
Preserved Lemons
Makes one pint jar
2-3 lemons – blemish free
¼ cup kosher salt, more if needed
Extra fresh squeezed lemon juice, if needed
- Place 1 tablespoon of salt in the bottom of a clean one pint jar
- Cut the lemons in quarters
- Sprinkle them all over with salt
- Put the lemon slices one at a time into the jar, squishing them down so they give up some of their juice
- Add more lemon juice to cover the lemons if necessary
- Top the jar with the rest of the salt and shake
- Put in the refrigerator shaking the jar every day for the first few days, then occasionally. They will be ready to use in one month
- To use: rinse the lemon wedge under running water to remove the excess salt, and discard the pulp (it retains too much salt)
- They keep for months in the refrigerator
I’m going to try your preserved lemon sauce!! I have sirachi and mayo in the fridge! I just did a post on preserved lemons and I’ve been looking for more ways to use them, so thanks! Great post!
http://bourbonandblueberries.com/2014/05/19/preserved-lemons-with-and-without-turmeric/
Thanks so much – I have been experimenting with basil preserved lemons and mayonnaise in the food processor – it is great stuff!
That is so weird you just mentioned that! I read that comment in my dashboard and couldn’t figure out if I wrote it or you wrote it! (I thought I was drunk wordpressing!). I put mayo, capers, preserved lemons and fresh basil in the food processor the other day it it blew my socks off. I put a shallot in there too. I used it as salad dressing and ended up mixing some into mashed potatoes….best mashed potatoes ever. I’m going to duplicate it and do a post on it. Mama’s new secret sauce!!
that’s so funny – I think we are both onto something great! Keep me posted on your preserved lemon experiments and I will add capers to my next batch.