Rhea's Rundown
This dish has a wonderful variety of flavors and is packed with nutrition. Couscous is such a fun and delicious pasta; ight and zesty lemon always ings me to a happy place. The recipe itself requires very minimal prep work and is a one-pan job. I try to make one to two fish dishes a week, preferably wild-caught. It’s likely to be more sustainable than their four-legged counterparts; especially if you shop where certified sustainable seafood is sold (look for the blue label). The local produce stand (Diehl’s Produce Stand of Annapolis, more on this below) and Whole Foods Market is where I get all my grocery needs. The only negative thing I can say about this dish is that I found the halibut to be relatively flavorless on its own. Perhaps a bit of marinating or some kind of citrus sauce would have been useful. However, I wouldn’t go about making the fish overly flavorful. I enjoyed pairing the mildness of the fish with the saltiness of the kalamata olives, the slightly sweet crunch of the bell pepper, and the subtle hints of oregano. I added sautéed asparagus for an extra burst of color and of course, for the sake of the ever-necessary fiber.
Ingredients - Serves 4
- Olive oil
- 1 red bell pepper, diced
- 2 garlic cloves, minced
- ½ cup uncooked Israeli couscous (I used tri-colored)
- ¾ cup chicken oth (plus extra as needed)
- 2 tablespoons pitted kalamata olives, quartered
- 4 skinless halibut fillets
- Kosher salt and black pepper
- Torn fresh oregano
- 2 lemons cut into thin slices
Directions
1. Preheat oiler to high.
2. Heat a large ovenproof skillet over medium-high heat. Add 1 teaspoon oil to pan; swirl to coat. Add bell pepper and garlic; cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Add couscous; cook 1 minute or until lightly owned. Add oth; ing to a boil. Cover and simmer 7 minutes or until liquid evaporates. Stir in olives, ¼ teaspoon salt, and ¼ teaspoon black pepper. I found that the couscous mixture wasn’t thickening up enough with the directed amount, so I continued to add chicken oth until it reduced to a less watery consistency. Set aside couscous and cover with tented aluminum foil.
3. Sprinkle halibut evenly with remaining ¼ teaspoon salt and remaining ¼ teaspoon black pepper. Add remaining 1 teaspoon oil to the now empty pan; cook 3 minutes. Remove pan from heat; turn fillets over. Arrange torn oregano and lemon slices evenly over fillets. Place pan in oven. Broil 5 minutes or until fish flakes easily when tested with a fork. Serve fish with couscous.
This particular recipe provided useful nutritional details that are as follows: (serving size 1 fillet and ½ cup couscous) calories: 308; fat: 6.7 g (sat 1g, mono 3.9g, poly 1g); protein: 35.2g; carbohydrates: 25.2 g; fiber: 2.5g; cholesterol 83 mg; iron: 0.5mg; sodium 557 mg; calcium 36 mg
Adapted from: “Halibut with Olive and Bell Pepper Couscous.” Cooking Light: Fast & Fresh 30-Minute Meals! Time Inc. Lifestyle Group. 2013. Print.
