Grilled Swordfish with Soy-Ginger Beurre Blanc
Guests on luxurious, privately-owned Necker Island don’t need to lift a finger: Chef Scott Williams is ready to prepare dishes that are at once flavorful and quick to appear. This swordfish with soy-ginger sauce begins with quenelles of crushed — not mashed — potatoes. The grilled swordfish steaks lean against the potatoes, and are accented with the Asian-influenced sauce. Tuna, shark, or other fish steaks could be substituted, and the potatoes are good with almost any main dish.
Ingredients
- Soy-Ginger Sauce
- Dark Soy Sauce - 1 cup
- Ginger Root - 1, medium, peeled and chopped (1 cup chopped ginger)
- Shallots - 10, medium, chopped
- Clarified Butter - 1 tablespoon (alt canola oil)
- Cloves Garlic - 3, chopped
- Thyme - 1 sprig
- White Wine Vinegar - 1/2 cup
- Dry white wine - 1/4 bottle
- Heavy (whipping) cream - 1 cup
- Unsalted Butter - 1 pound (4 sticks), diced and cold
- Crushed Potatoes
- Yukon Gold Potatoes - 1 pound, 4 ounces, peeled and rinsed (alt. imilar potatoes)
- Kosher salt - 2 tablespoons
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1/2 cup
- Green Onions - 6, chopped
- Flat leaf parsley - 1/2 cup, stemmed and chopped
- Vegetables
- Baby Carrots - 12, or 4 carrots, cut in 1/2-inch dice
- Butternut squash - 1, peeled and cut in 1/2-inch dice
- Unsalted Butter - 4 ounces (1 stick) (alt. canola oil)
- Zucchini - 2, cut in 1/2-inch dice
- Swordfish
- Swordfish steaks - eight, 6-ounce
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Extra Virgin Olive Oil - 1/2 cup
Instructions
To prepare the soy-ginger sauce: Place the soy sauce and ginger root in a small bowl and marinate for 1 hour (this can also be done overnight for a more pronounced ginger flavor). Using a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat, cook the shallots in the butter or oil until shiny and white, about 1 minute. Add the thyme and garlic and cook an additional 2 minutes. Add the white wine vinegar, reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook until reduced and nearly dry, about 4 minutes. Add the white wine and cook until reduced by half, about 5 more minutes. Gently whisk in the cream and cook until reduced by half, about 4 minutes. Whisking continuously, whisk in the butter, one piece at a time, incorporating each piece completely before adding the next. When all the butter has been added, remove the pan from the heat and stir in 2 tablespoons of the ginger-soy mixture (more can be added, according to taste; remaining marinade can be refrigerated for up to 1 week). Set aside.
To make the potatoes: Put the potatoes in a pot, cover with salted water, and boil over medium heat until just fork-tender, 10 - 15 minutes. Drain and set aside the potatoes, keeping them warm. Put the olive oil and onions in the same pot and cook over medium heat until the onions soften, about 1 minute. Put the potatoes back in the pot and reduce the heat to low. With the back of a spoon, crush the potatoes into large chunks. Stir in the parsley. Set aside and keep warm.
To make the vegetables: Blanch the baby carrots in boiling salted water for 30 seconds, remove with a slotted spoon and dip into ice water, drain, and set aside. Blanch the butternut squash in the same water for 2 to 3 minutes, dip into ice water, drain, and set aside. In a saute pan over medium heat, melt the butter and saute the zucchini and squash until tender, about 2 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Add the carrots and toss. Set aside.
To make the swordfish: Preheat the grill to highest setting. Season one side of the steaks with salt and pepper. Rub with olive oil, turn over, and season and oil the other side. Grill for 2 to 3 minutes per side, turning once, to an internal temperature of 135 F, for medium-rare.
To serve: Using two large spoons, scoop potatoes and form into quenelles, placing them in the centers of warmed serving plates. Lay a swordfish steak against the potatoes. Arrange an assortment of the vegetables to one side of the fish. Spoon sauce at the base of the fish.
