Fun at a Fish Class

Cooking School, Sur la Table style, was a special treat this week. Armed with gift certificates from her mom Meg, Hilary and I set out to master five Fabulous Fish Dishes... all in two hours. 

Chef Instructor Alex looked young enough to be a high school student (he wasn't) but certainly knew his way around a kitchen, even one with 16 students and work stations! The ingredients were prepped and well-organized ahead of time, 3 kitchen assistants kept things moving and offered guidance as necessary, and our fellow students were a friendly, positive crowd. 

Omigosh, it was a high-energy, fast-paced session.
The menu featured:

• Soy-Honey Lacquered Salmon over Scallion Fried Rice
• Cumin Grilled Halibut with Chipotle Tartar Sauce and Cabbage Ribbons
• Lemon-Thyme Roasted Snapper Fillets with Tomatoes and Olives
• Seared Tuna Salad with Citrus-Sriracha Salsa
• Prosciutto-Wrapped Scallops over Arugula-Parmesan Salad

We worked in teams of 4, sharing the cooking and the tasting after each  preparation. I tried to grab a photo or two for each recipe, but somehow the fork won out over the iPhone for several dishes. The images are blurry, but hey! I was busy cooking... or eating. 

The menu began with marinated, prosciutto-wrapped scallops, and just one bite left me craving more.

The seared tuna was my personal favorite, and the accompanying sriracha spiced citrus salsa was outstanding. I'll be serving that salsa with other dishes.

Several long minutes of fast whisk action needed to reduce the brown sugar-soy cooking sauce for the salmon fillets, but oh! what a delicious glaze it yielded.

The halibut was swapped out for true cod, brown sugar substituted for honey, and we did not prepare the tartar sauce or the fried rice, but those were little hiccups in an otherwise terrific class. The preparation and cooking techniques were useful, the results showcased a variety of flavors that ranged from amazingly good and spicy to okay-but-needed-tartar sauce. 

Conclusion: we felt comfortable enough with each recipe do this at home... and so we did, the very next night. Check back soon for the at-home versions of Seared Tuna Salad with Citrus-Sriracha Salsa and Soy-Honey Lacquered Salmon over Scallion Fried Rice.