Yotam Ottolenghi’s halibut with spiced chickpea and herb salad

Yotam Ottolenghi’s halibut with spiced chickpea and herb salad. Photograph: Andrew Scrivani/New York Times
Yotam Ottolenghi’s halibut with spiced chickpea and herb salad. Photograph: Andrew Scrivani/New York Times
Serves: 0
Course: Main Course
Cooking Time: 0 hr 50 mins

Ingredients

  • 60ml olive oil
  • 1tsp ground cumin
  • 1tsp ground coriander
  • ¼tsp ground Persian lime powder (optional)
  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed
  • ¾tsp sea salt
  • 2 lemons (finely grate the zest to get 2tsp, juice to get 2tbsp and cut the remaining into wedges)
  • 4 skinless boneless halibut fillets, patted dry (about 450g total)
  • 1 400g can chickpeas, drained and patted dry
  • 80g plain yogurt
  • 10g coriander leaves
  • 2tbsp parsley leaves
  • 4 spring onions, finely sliced
  • 1 small bunch large-leaf spinach, firm stems removed, leaves finely sliced
  • 1 or 2 mild green chillies, such as Anaheim, to taste, finely sliced and seeds removed if you like
  • Salt
  • 2tbsp vegetable oil

Step 1 Marinate the fish and chickpeas: in a small bowl, mix the first six ingredients together with the lemon zest. Add 2½ tablespoons of marinade to a bowl with the halibut and mix well. Add two tablespoons of the marinade to a separate bowl with the chickpeas and stir to combine. Set both aside at room temperature for 20 minutes. Mix the remaining marinade together with the yogurt and set aside.

Step 2 Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, blend the herbs together with the spring onions, spinach, chillies, lemon juice and a good pinch of salt.

Step 3 Heat a large nonstick frying pan over a medium-high heat, then add half a tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add the chickpeas (and bits of garlic) and fry for six minutes, stirring every now and then until crisp and golden brown. Transfer to a plate and wipe the pan clean.

Step 4 Return the pan to a medium-high heat with the remaining 1½ tablespoons of vegetable oil. Add the halibut fillets, spaced apart, and fry for three minutes on one side, then flip and fry for another two minutes on the other side, until both sides are crisp and golden brown.

Step 5 Very carefully transfer the fillets to a large platter. Toss the chickpeas gently with the salad, then transfer the salad to the platter next to the halibut fillets. Drizzle half of the yogurt over the salad and serve with the lemon wedges and the remaining yogurt sauce alongside. – New York Times