Okay, so I'm kind of the opposite of my heading above. I tend to shop daily and cook fresh every night but I know that is not an option for 99% of the population. Here is a couple of quick and easy dinners with one quick shop.
Dinner 1
Pan seared and oven roasted halibut or white fish and served on a bed of pureed chickpea and cauliflower with saute`d greens. Served with a side of fresh coleslaw.
Dinner 2
Halibut or white fish tacos
Shopping list:
1 head of purple cabbage
1 head of cauliflower
3-4 large carrots
2 avocados
1 lemon
5 limes
Cilantro (1 bunch)
1 head of garlic
Green beans or a bunch of asparagus
1 red onion
2 pieces of halibut per person (filets are best and skin on is preferred)
1 can of garbanzo beans
1 package of small flour tortillas
Butter (if you do not already have it)
Mayo (if you do not already have it)
Vegetable Oil (if you do not already have it)
Raisins and sunflower seeds for the coleslaw (optional)
From the Pantry
White wine vinegar
Olive oil
Salt and pepper
Chilli flakes
Chicken stock (or from the freezer)
Dijon Mustard
Sugar (which hopefully everyone has in their pantry)
Here are the directions for the first meal which will include halibut that is served on a bed of cauliflower pure, green veggies and a side of coleslaw:
To start preheat the oven to 400 degrees F, coat the halibut in a small amount of olive oil, salt and pepper and then set aside.
Coleslaw
This salad is delicious, quick and easy to prepare and makes extra to serve with tomorrow’s dinner.
Shred 3-4 carrots
Finely shred ½ a head of red cabbage
Finely diced ¼ of a red onion
Combine in a bowl and set aside
Save the uncut cabbage for your next dinner
In another bowl, mix the dressing:
½ cup of mayo
¾ TBS of olive oil
¾ TBS of white wine vinegar
1 tsp of white sugar
1/4 TBS of dijon mustard
Pinch of Salt and pepper
Squeeze the juice of lemon
Mix and add to the grated vegetables. Stir in raisins or sunflower seeds if you so desire and chill.
Steam one head of Cauliflower that has been cut into pieces
Once it is steamed (a good way to check if it is done is poking it with a fork and if is soft, its done) put it into a blender or food processor and puree with 1 clove of garlic, a squeeze of half a lemon, 1/2 a can of Garbanzo beans, a pinch of chilli flakes for a bit of spice, 1/4 TBS of dijon and salt and pepper. Add ¼ of a cup of warm chicken stock, vegetable stock or if need be, water as it is mixing until smooth. Return to a pot and put on simmer until ready to serve.
In the picture below, I frenched the asparagus. If you don’t have a frencher then you can always cut your green beans or asparagus done the middle for a little presentation and to speed the cooking process.
Heat a pan and add a tad of butter and some olive oil. Toss in the greens you are using (either asparagus or green beans) and sauté until ‘just’ cooked. 3 minutes or so. If you have small amounts of chicken stock then you can sauté the greens in chicken stock to add a bit of flavor.
Now you will prepare the Halibut
Heat an oven proof pan until hot and place your halibut meat side down for 30 to 60 seconds, then flip to skin side down and sear for another 20 seconds. Place the pan into the oven and bake for 3-6 minutes, depending on the size of the filets.
Note:
Halibut is always better under done then over done as when you pull it from the oven it will continue to cook a few more degrees. If you are at all concerned about it being under cooked gently open it with a knife or fork and it should be juicy with a bright white color, not grey. Halibut will go dry and flakey if it’s overdone........ugh!
To plate (presentation always makes a great impression) spoon the pureed cauliflower onto a plate or serving bowl, top with either asparagus or green beans and place the halibut on top. Serve with a side of coleslaw in a small bowl.
I just cooked this meal with some friends and it was delicious and ‘super clean.’
You'll notice in the picture that I added some crispy leeks. Simply deep fry in some grape
seed oil until crispy. Place on a paper towel and add some salt.
The second dinner will be halibut tacos made simple and easy.
Ingredients:
½ head red cabbage
5 limes
1-2 avocados sliced
Remaining red onion from last night
1 bunch of cilantro (one bunch)
1 package of small flour tortillas
Pre heat the oven to 400 F
While the oven is heating you will warm the tortillas in one of two ways:
1 - Place tortillas in a damp cloth on a plate and put them in a microwave for a few seconds until warm.
2 – If you do not own a microwave you can panfry them with grape seed oil until they are brown, lay on a paper towel and serve when the meal is ready. They will be a little more crispy this way which is the way I prefer.
Prepare the cabbage and red onion. Begin by thinly slicing (when I say thin, I mean thin and if you have a mandolin then use it) the cabbage and red onion and placing into two separate bowls. Squeeze the juice of 5 limes (being careful to remove the seeds) to the red onions with a sprinkle of salt (stirring occasionally while dinner is being prepared). This process creates delicious pickled onions.
Heat a frying pan with a splash of vegetable oil and once it is hot, sauté the cabbage in olive oil with a splash of white wine vinegar. When the cabbage is soft (this should only take a few minutes) remove from the pan and place in a bowl.
Cook the halibut as you did the night before except this time when they are cooked you will break them into bite sized pieces. Place the bite sized halibut pieces onto a warmed, soft tortilla and top with sliced avocado or guacamole, pickled onion and cabbage (you can add a small amount of sour cream if you like) and finally top with fresh cilantro. Serve with the remaining coleslaw from the night before and enjoy.
