In Hawaii our love of fish knows no bounds. Whether delivered raw as poke or sushi, whipped up in a fancy French preparation or pan-fried outdoors, local folks have always enjoyed the abundance and variety of fish in our waters.
Kapiolani Community College capitalizes on our love of seafood with "A Splash of Aloha" (Watermark Publishing, $15.95) a cookbook that also offers practical information on safe handling of fish, fish preparation and nutrition.
The recipe section is organized by type of local fish, and one section of the book offers recipes for Hawaii’s aquaculture seafood, including butterfish, shrimp, abalone, kampachi, moi and tilapia.
| HANDLING FISH
>> Do not rinse saltwater fish with fresh water unless cooking immediately afterward. Fresh water contains bacteria that will cause saltwater fish to decompose, and by the next day the fish will be smelly and rotten.
>> Store raw fish properly, at the coolest temperature possible: Wrap fish in paper towel, then plastic wrap. Place a block of ice or pile of crushed ice in a colander that’s placed in another container. Place wrapped fish on ice. When ice melts, water will drain away from fish. (Remember, fresh water will decompose raw fish.)
>> Keeping very fresh fish at 34 degrees will maintain its quality for at least three to five days.
>> Since saltwater freezes at a lower temperature, 26 to 28 degrees, fish kept in saltwater ice will stay pristine for weeks at sea.
>> When placing fish in the refrigerator, remember that hot air rises and cool air drops, so keep the fish on ice on the lowest shelf.
Source: Grant Sato
|
The book will be launched Saturday at KCC’s farmers market.
Chef Grant Sato, who teaches many of KCC’s popular noncredit cooking classes, says delicious preparations require understanding how to handle fish as well as how the characteristics of different varieties require different approaches.
"Fish has the lowest internal cooking temperature of all the proteins, so it can easily be overcooked," Sato said. "The flesh fully coagulates at 145 degrees."
A general preparation guideline, no matter what the cooking method, is that it takes six to eight minutes per inch of thickness to fully cook a fish. Sato stresses this means six to eight minutes of total cooking time, so that an inch-thick piece would be cooked three to four minutes per side. Rare doneness takes three to four minutes total; medium requires five to six minutes.
"If you want the fish to cook faster, cut it thinner," Sato suggested.
As for preparing specific varieties of pelagic (open-ocean) fish, a fair amount depends on its size.
Billfish, including broadbill and swordfish, are larger, which means larger muscle tissue, which translates to firmer, drier meat. Smaller pelagic fish such as mahimahi and ono are moist and tender because the muscle tissue is smaller, meaning a smaller flake.
"With billfish you want to do something like season it with salt and pepper and marinate it in olive oil, then put it on the grill. Sear the outer portion quickly at a high temperature to lock in the moisture," Sato said. "Fish like mahi and ono are more versatile, and that’s why you find most food operations using these items. They can be processed in any way and have a longer shelf life.
"You can put a seared mahi on a hot buffet line because it has moisture and holds up well. With billfish, after 10 minutes it would turn into cardboard, so it’s got to be a special that’s cooked to order."
Locally farmed kampachi and tilapia are high-quality product. Sato suggests preparing kampachi, an oily and firm fish, either raw or seared but not fully cooked. He says that though tilapia was associated in past generations with dirty water, aquaponically raised tilapia is pristine and delicious.
"The tilapia grown at Mari’s Garden is referred to as a ‘koi-lapia’ because it has pretty pink and orange skin. Scales and fillet are pink and orange as well," he said. "When eating it, people think it’s some kind of snapper. If people take a look at this fish, we could turn around those associations."
Snapper such as onaga, ehu and opakapaka are valued for their small flake and because they do not have one long muscle, which ensures tender, moist flesh. Larger snappers such as gindai and uku are a bit tougher, but all do fairly well with a wide range of preparations, Sato says.
As for seasoning fish, the objective is to "clean up" fishy taste and odor.
"The majority of fish are mild in flavor, so seasoning assists the mildness," he said. "But some fish have a higher fat content, which means a more extreme flavor. Fish like salmon or shutome have stronger flavors, so you need to use more herbs to offset the gaminess."
 WHAT’S COOKING
>> Kapiolani Community College farmers market (7:30 to 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 22 and 29): Books and a sample dish will be sold.
>> KCC cooking classes ($65, register at 734-9211): “Cooking with Fish” with chef Grant Sato, 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday; “Local Fish Favorites” with Sato, 1 to 5 p.m. Sept. 22; and “A Splash of Aloha” with chef Carol Nardello, 8 a.m. to noon Oct. 13
>> Book sales: Officially begin Sept. 22 in bookstores and at www.bookshawaii.net; available at Longs Drugs from Sept. 23. Also, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Oct. 7 at the Seventh Annual Hawaii Fishing & Seafood Festival at Pier 38
>> Demonstrations: 5 to 9 p.m. Oct. 5, Sea-to-Me tasting event, Pier 38, $75
|
Sato suggests dill and thyme, subtle and refreshing herbs, and citrus juice or zest to counter fishiness.
SEAFOOD MISO SOUP WITH DIPPING SAUCE
Sharon Kobayashi, “A Splash of Aloha”
2 pieces dashi konbu (4-by-4-inch squares)
1-inch piece ginger, crushed
6 cups water
1/2 cup bonito flakes
1/2 pound clams (or mussels, scrubbed)
8 large shrimp
1 12-ounce shutome fillet, cut into 1-inch pieces (or substitute opah or mahimahi)
1/4 cup sake
3 tablespoons miso
4 teaspoons soy sauce
1/4 cup finely grated daikon
4 teaspoons lemon juice or ponzu
Steamed baby bok choy (optional)
Sliced green onions (optional)
Bring konbu, ginger and water to boil. Remove from heat, add bonito and cover pot. Let steep at least 15 minutes, strain and discard konbu and bonito. Reserve 2 tablespoons of broth for dipping sauce.
Bring rest of broth to a boil and add clams and shrimp. As soon as clams begin to open and shrimp starts to turn opaque (about 2 minutes), remove from heat and add fish.
Mix sake with miso, adding 1 tablespoon of sake at a time until smooth. Add to broth. Cover and rest 5 minutes or until fish is cooked through.
Meanwhile, prepare dipping sauce. In mixing bowl, combine reserved broth, shoyu, daikon and lemon juice or ponzu.
Divide sauce into 4 small bowls or deep saucers (about 2 tablespoons each). Gently reheat soup (do not boil).
Top each portion with baby bok choy and green onions if using. Serve with brown rice. Dip fish in sauce as you eat. Serves 4.
Approximate nutritional information, per serving: 230 calories, 8 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 85 mg cholesterol, 920 mg sodium, 7 g carbohydrate, 1 g fiber, 1 g sugar, 29 g protein
BRAISED HAPU‘UPU‘U WITH LUP CHEONG, SHIITAKE MUSHROOMS AND BOK CHOY
Grant Sato, “A Splash of Aloha”
1 tablespoon salad oil
1 pound hapuupuu fillet (can substitute with uku)
2 cups chicken broth
2 tablespoons oyster sauce (can substitute with mushroom sauce)
1 teaspoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon super-fine julienned ginger
4 fresh shiitake mushrooms, cut in half
2 baby bok choy, cut in half lengthwise
1/2 cup julienned lup cheong (sweet Chinese sausage)
Pinch sugar
Heat oil in medium-size sauté pan on high. When oil lightly smokes, place fish skin side up and sear 1 minute.
Turn fillet over and quickly deglaze pan with chicken broth.
Add oyster sauce, shoyu, garlic, ginger, mushrooms, baby bok choy and lup cheong, and allow liquid to come back to boil.
Once boiling, add sugar and reduce heat to low.
Place lid on pan and allow the contents to braise 10 minutes. Remove lid and check fish for doneness.
Once fish is cooked, serve family style or in individual portions.
Accompanying sauce can be thickened with cornstarch slurry (see note) before serving. Serves 4.
Slurry: Combine equal amounts cornstarch and water, stir well. Heat sauce while adding cornstarch and cook until smooth.
Approximate nutritional information, per serving: 320 calories, 17 g fat, 0.5 g saturated fat, 45 mg cholesterol, 970 mg sodium, 15 g carbohydrate, 5 g fiber, 6 g sugar, 30 g protein
