Courtesy of chef Andrew McQuesten, north

“Flounder in the winter months is something special in New England. It’s one of the few fish that commercially can still be harvested regularly in the colder weather. The one thing to take into consideration is that this is also ramping up for their spawning season. At the restaurant we get almost all our fish in whole and when it is spawning season that means we’re paying for all the roe sacks (egg sacks) that the fish have in them, in some cases dwarfing the size of the filets we are getting off the fish. In those cases we have to start getting creative with how to use them. In a lot of instances we can make a sauce out of them (it’s rich and delicious when seasoned with vinegar and ginger) but we also salt cure them which makes them last a considerable amount longer.”

— Andrew McQuesten, north

RECIPE

INGREDIENTS

Fish

1 pound of flounder filets (any local flounder works such as winter flounder, grey sole, yellowtail flounder, or American plaice)

Spice blend for fish (this will make enough to have on hand for other things, also great on chicken or other seafood including other fish, crab, or lobster)

Black Pepper 8 tbs

Cumin 8 tbs

Ginger 1 ½ tsp

Cayenne 1 tsp

Coriander 3 tsp

Cardamom1 tsp

Allspice 2 tsp

Clove 1/2 tsp

Cinnamon 1 tsp

Kochukaru (Korean Chili Flake) 8 tbs

Salt 4 tsp

Bok Choy Dressing

Canola Oil 1 Tbsp

Sesame Oil 1 Tbsp

Lemongrass 3 stalks, peeled and minced

Ginger 2 large knobs, peeled and minced

Garlic 6 cloves peeled and sliced thin

Sake about 8 ounces (or dry white wine)

Rice vinegar 2 ounces

Water about 8 ounces

Soy Sauce 4 ounces

Sambal 1 tsp

Brown sugar 2 tsp

Salt 1 large pinch

Baby bok choy, split and cleaned, about 1 pound (available in the winter at your local farmers market)

INSTRUCTIONS

Bok choy dressing

In a small sauce pot on medium heat add 1 tablespoon of canola (or other neutral) oil and 1 tablespoon of sesame oil. Add in your ginger, lemongrass, garlic and a pinch of salt. Once your kitchen smells like heaven, deglaze your pan with the sake. If you have any sake leftover, save it for dinner, it’ll be delicious so make sure you buy at least OK sake. The rule of thumb when it comes to cooking wines is if you wouldn’t drink it, you shouldn’t cook with it.

At this point you can add the rest of your ingredients and stir, we’re looking for the whole thing to reduce by 1/2 the volume. Once the dressing has reduced, set aside

Bok choy

Char bok choy halves in a pan on high heat. (If you don’t have good ventilation, broil in the oven instead, checking frequently to avoid total burning. See note below). Once the bok choy has a char on it, add half of the dressing to the pan and a pinch of salt. Add more dressing as needed, tasting to make sure it has enough salt.

Note: If broiling bok choy, remove it from oven and place in serving bowl. Add half the dressing and a pinch of salt and toss gently.

Flounder

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
Place spices in a large bowl and whisk together with a fork.
Pat the flounder fillets with the spice blend.
Place flounder fillets, skin-side down, on a well-greased baking sheet and cook for about 10 minutes. Cook until thickest part of fish is 145 degrees or when flesh is firm but not falling apart.

To serve

Place bok choy down, fish filet on top and serve with scallions and a side of steamed rice.