A good halibut fillet does not need much done to it. Salt, pepper, a hot pan and about three minutes a side is the whole job. The relish is where the flavor comes from, and it cooks in the same skillet while the fish rests.
Yellow bell pepper and plum tomato soften fast with shallot and garlic. A little sherry vinegar and smoked paprika at the end give it enough edge to cut the richness without burying the fish. The whole plate runs about 252 calories a serving.
Pat the fillets dry on both sides first. Wet fish steams instead of searing, and that one step decides whether you get a crust. Season them evenly with the salt and black pepper and let them sit on the counter while the pan comes up to heat.
Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high. Add about 2 ¼ teaspoons of the olive oil and swirl to coat the bottom. Lay the fillets in away from you and then leave them alone for 3 minutes. Moving them early tears the crust off. Turn once, give them another 3 minutes, and check the thickest part with a fork. It should flake without resistance. Move the fish to a warm plate and cover it loosely while you build the relish.
Add the remaining 2 ¼ teaspoons of oil to the same pan and swirl it around. Drop in the shallots and garlic and cook about a minute, until they turn translucent and smell sweet. Keep them moving. Garlic burns fast in a pan that has just come off a hard sear.
Add the yellow bell pepper, plum tomato, sherry vinegar and smoked paprika all at once. Sauté about 3 minutes, until the pepper is tender but still has some bite to it. Scrape the browned bits off the bottom of the pan while it cooks. That is where the flavor from the fish ended up, and the vinegar will lift it right off.
Take the pan off the heat and stir in the parsley so it stays green. Spoon the relish over the fish and get it to the table. This is not a dish that improves sitting around, and the pepper loses its texture as it cools.
This is a weeknight plate. Twenty minutes start to finish, one pan, and light enough that you can put rice or a green salad next to it without the meal getting heavy. Halibut is the obvious choice up here, but lingcod and rockfish both hold together well in a hot pan, and cod will work if you handle it gently.
Recipe Credit: Maureen Callahan
