Bacalao a la Plancha

140g | 5oz Skin-On Atlantic Cod filet

40g sweet peas

10g sliced, blanched leek rings

2g finely chopped Calabrian Chile

12g ajo y perejil (salsa verde paella)

25g calamari rings

30g Squid Ink Sauce

6g diced chilled unsalted butter

3g fresh squeezed lemon juice

less 1g picked dill

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Hold all the ingredients cold. Do not pre-heat the squid ink sauce. Everything should be cooked a la minute.

Searing the fish:

1. Season the flesh side of the cod with kosher salt.
2. Pat the skin-side dry with a C-fold towel.
3. Heat blended oil in a saute pan to nearly smoke point.
4. Add the fish to the hot pan, skin side down.
5. Use your fish spatula to gently press the fish flat to the hot pan, crisping the skin & preventing the fish from curling up.
6. Lower the heat on your pan to medium.
7. Continue to cook on the burner until the skin-side of the fish crisps & releases from the pan. You will cook the fish skin-side down on the stove top until nearly finished.
8. Move the saute pan with the fish to a 450 degree oven (leave skin-side down) to finish cooking through.
9. Once the fish is cooked through, remove from the oven. Quickly flip the fish & just "kiss" the flesh side of the fish on the hot pan to complete.
10. Remove the fish from the pan, set on a sizzle platter skin-side up.
11. SAVE THE PAN TO MAKE YOUR SAUCE.

While the fish in cooking, cook the peas:

1. In a small sauce pot (yes, the tiny pot that seems pointless :)) add a small amount of blended oil, sauce the blanched leeks until translucent, no color. Season with kosher salt & black pepper.
2. Add the sweet peas and saute to bright green & warmed through.
3. Add the Calabrian Chile. Stir to distribute evenly and warm through.
4. Just before plating, finish the peas with the Ajo y Perejil (salsa verde paella). Stir quickly to coat the peas & leeks.
5. Move quickly so that the peas & salsa verde stay bright green & vibrant.

To make the Squid Ink Pan Sauce:

1. Using the pan you cooked the fish in, pour off any excess oil.
2. Add the Squid Ink Sauce, it will quickly come to a simmer.
3. Add the cold diced butter & swirl the sauce to emulsify the butter into the sauce.
4. IF the sauce looks oily or as if it has "broken" - a small amount of cold water & bring it back to a simmer to tighten will fix it. DO NOT BOIL THE SAUCE, IT WILL JUST SHATTER.

Cooking the Calamari:

1. Season the calamari with salt and black pepper.
2. Sear on the plancha, cook until tender & nicely caramelized - 4-5 minutes.

Plating:

1. With a slotted plating spoon, set the peas in the bottom of your bowl to one end.
2. Gently & carefully, spoon the hot squid sauce at the opposite side of the peas (be careful, it's a pain to try to wipe up black squid ink splatter from a white plate).
3. Set the seared cod in the center.
4. Garnish the cod with the seared calamari, picked dill, and a healthy squeeze of fresh lemon juice.

MOVE QUICKLY TO KEEP EVERYTHING BRIGHT GREEN.

DO NOT BOIL THE SQUID INK SAUCE, SIMMER TO HOLD IT'S EMULSIFICATION WITH THE BUTTER.

ONLY SEASON THE FLESH SIDE OF THE FISH TO PRESERVE THE SKIN.

DO NOT SKIP THE LEMON JUICE ON THE FINISH, THE DISH NEEDS THE ACID.