Arctic Char with Tahini Sauce, Nuts, and Herbs

A trio of toppings—a lemony sesame seed sauce, a chunky nut-and-herb “pesto,” and sweet-tart pomegranate—boost the flavor and appearance of simple seared Arctic char, a fish from the same family as trout and salmon. You can chop the nuts and herbs in a food processor to save time, but process them separately so that the herbs won’t get bruised and mushy. I like serving this dish with a roasted carrot salad.

Ingredients

For the tahini sauce

6 Tbs. tahini (sesame seed paste)
4 tsp. fresh lemon juice
1 small clove garlic, crushed
1/2 tsp. ground cumin
Kosher salt

For the nut-herb topping

1/4 cup toasted, finely chopped almonds
1/4 cup toasted, finely chopped walnuts
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh cilantro
3 Tbs. finely chopped red onion
2-1/2 Tbs. extra-virgin olive oil
2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley
2 Tbs. finely chopped fresh mint
1/8 tsp. crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the fish

1 Tbs. virgin coconut oil
4 6-oz. skin-on Arctic char fillets
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

To serve

1/4 cup pomegranate seeds
2 tsp. pomegranate molasses

Instructions

Make the tahini sauce

Process the tahini, lemon juice, garlic, cumin, 1/4 tsp. salt, and 5 Tbs. water in a food processor until smooth, about 1 minute.

Make the nut-herb topping

In a medium bowl, gently toss the almonds, walnuts, cilantro, onion, olive oil, parsley, mint, and pepper flakes with 1/4 tsp. salt and 1/8 tsp. pepper until well combined. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper, if necessary.

Cook the fish

Heat the oil in a 12-inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat until shimmering hot. Lightly season the fish with salt and pepper. Put the fish in the skillet flesh side down and cook, undisturbed, until golden, about 2 minutes. Flip and cook until barely opaque in the center (use a paring knife to check), about 1 minute more.
Transfer the fish skin side down to a serving plate. Spread the tahini sauce over the top of the fillets, then sprinkle with the nut-herb topping and the pomegranate seeds. Drizzle 1/2 tsp. of the pomegranate molasses over each, and serve.

Author

Pete Evans

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