Apr 9
2013

Braised Alaskan Black Cod

in Japanese, Main Course, Nimono, Seafood, Sustainable Seafood Tour

Braised Alaskan Black Cod

Alaska love has been flowing strong this year on American television, with Andrew Zimmern visiting Alaska’s Inside Passage on an episode of his show Bizarre Foods, and the most recent season of Top Chef drawing to a close with the final four contestants earning the chance to visit Juneau, Alaska and competing using seafood from Alaska’s waters.  All of the love has me wanting to go on my own Alaska culinary adventure.  But for now I’ll have to settle for having a mini adventure from my kitchen by cooking some of the wild, natural and sustainable seafood from Alaska.  Alaska is doing amazing things in the world of seafood sustainability thanks to the state’s ban on finfish farming and a constitutional mandate for responsible fisheries management.

Sustainable Seafood Tour

I was recently sent some black cod to experiment with by the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute.  Black cod is especially high in omega-3 fatty acids, which provides health benefits ranging from improved heart health and brain function to increased longevity. In fact, crucial long-chain fatty acids EPA and DHA (eicosapentaenoic acid and docosahexaenoic acid, respectively) occur almost exclusively in seafood, and cannot be substituted by the single ALA (alpha-linolenic acid) found in plants.

Fresh Alaskan Black Cod

Not only is it very good for you, but when caught in Alaska it’s a fantastic sustainable choice as well.  Alaskan wild-caught black cod has a Best Choice rating from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch and is certified sustainable to the standard of the Marine Stewardship Council.  Black cod is available fresh from Mid-March through November, and available frozen year round.  It’s a fabulous fish to cook to celebrate springtime!

Alaskan Black Cod Fillets

Black cod, also known as butterfish and sablefish, has juicy white flesh, and is one of the easiest fish to cook in my opinion.  One of my favorite ways to cook it is to make gindara no nitsuke, or braised black cod.

Prepping ginger, garlic, and scallions

I julienne ginger, cut lengths of scallions, and mince garlic, all of which go into a large saucepan with some dashi (Japanese sea stock) and some black cod fillets.  After simmering the fillets for a few minutes I add some sugar, and then some soy sauce, which cooks down into a dark, sweet and savory liquid which I use to glaze the fish as it finishes cooking.

Making Braised Alaskan Black Cod

Butterfish is a better descriptor than black cod, as the cooked fish is rich and buttery, with a punch of umami and sweetness from the braising liquid.  If you’re nervous about cooking seafood, this is the dish to make!

Braised Alaskan Black Cod Fillet

Print This Recipe Print This Recipe

Braised Alaskan Black Cod

Makes 4 servings

4 black cod fillets with skin on (approximately 7 ounces each)
1 2/3 cup dashi (Japanese sea stock)
4-inch piece (about 2 ounces) fresh ginger, peeled and julienned
1/4 cup sugar
1/4 cup soy sauce
2 tablespoons mirin
6 scallions, ends trimmed and cut into 3-inch lengths
2 cloves garlic, minced
Lemon zest, to garnish

1. Make a small diagonal cut across each fillet on the scale side (this allows the fish to absorb flavor better).

2. Pour the dashi into a large, deep saucepan. Add the fish fillets skin side up and the ginger, garlic, and scallions. Cover the fish with a drop-lid* and cook over high heat for 3 minutes. Then sprinkle the sugar over the contents of the saucepan, reduce the heat to medium-high and continue cooking for 3 more minutes.

3. Pour the soy sauce over the fish fillets, replace the drop lid, and continue cooking over medium-high heat for 5 minutes. Add the mirin and cook for 3 minutes longer. After adding the mirin, while the fish is cooking, repeatedly pour the thickening sauce over the fish fillets to glaze them and prevent them from burning.

4. Carefully transfer the fish fillets to a plate with a slotted spatula and check the fish to make sure it has no residual bones. If the braising liquid is not thick enough, keep cooking it over high heat until it becomes caramelized (but be careful not to burn it).

5. Garnish the fish fillets with the braised ginger and scallions and drizzle with the braising liquid, then top with a bit of lemon zest and serve.

*Note: Japanese-style drop-lids, called otoshibuta, float on top of the liquid in a pot while it simmers, helping the heat stay evenly distributed but helping it circulate (which also increases the temperature), reduces the tendency of the liquid to boil with large bubbles, and keep the food from moving around. This helps create a gentler cooking atmosphere for braising! These lids are smaller than the diameter of the pot  you are cooking with so they can sit inside on top of the surface.  You can order them online, like this silicone one on Amazon.com, or you can substitute a sheet of thick cooking parchment or a piece of aluminum foil, though some things you won’t be able to use the aluminum foil because it will interact with the ingredients.
==============================

*Disclosure: The Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute sent me black cod at no cost, but all opinions expressed are my own.

{ 18 comments… read them below or add one }

Jayne April 9, 2013 at 7:53 pm

Your cod looks incredibly fresh! I like how your braising liquid is so simple. I believe if the fish is fresh, you don’t need complicated ingredients to make it taste good. :-)

Reply

Fuji Mama (Rachael) April 11, 2013 at 8:58 pm

@Jayne — I couldn’t agree more!

Reply

Fuji Papa April 10, 2013 at 7:19 am

Looks amazingly good. I think we need to actually go to Alaska and get it right off the dock.

Reply

Fuji Mama (Rachael) April 11, 2013 at 9:09 pm

@Fuji Papa — I agree. Time to plan!

Reply

Ilana April 10, 2013 at 7:48 am

Wow, this looks amazing. I’ve never heard of a drop lid. I’m assuming it’s the wooden object that is sitting right in the pan in one of your photos. Does a drop lid put pressure on the ingredients while cooking? Is that why you specify a drop lid rather than just using a regular pan lid?

Reply

Fuji Mama (Rachael) April 11, 2013 at 9:09 pm

@Ilana — I’m so glad you commented. I had a section about drop lids that somehow got deleted in the formatting, which I’ve added back in. Essentially, Japanese-style drop-lids float on top of the liquid in a pot while it simmers, helping the heat stay evenly distributed and reducing the tendency of the liquid to boil with large bubbles. This helps create a gentler cooking atmosphere for braising! You can order them online, like this silicone one on Amazon.com: http://www.amazon.com/Marna-White-Piggy-Steamer-8-1/dp/B007XHTDWY/ref=pd_bxgy_k_text_z, or you can substitute a sheet of thick cooking parchment or a piece of aluminum foil, though some things you won’t be able to use the aluminum foil because it will interact with the ingredients.

Reply

Ilonka June 11, 2013 at 6:14 am

I made this last night with Wolf-fish since I couldn’t get black cod and it was fantastic! Such a nice change from grilled fish. This will definitely be in our regular rotation.

Reply

michaelh December 8, 2013 at 6:53 pm

what’s a good substitute for dashi?

Reply

Fuji Mama (Rachael) December 10, 2013 at 3:51 pm

You can use chicken broth, but it won’t be exactly the same.

Reply

iznajmljivanje apartmana beograd January 22, 2015 at 3:14 pm

Rent is perhaps the most important concept to understand when signing onto a
tenancy agreement. Then have a post-tea stroll around the parks and gardens, taking in the diverse range of
flowers and birds. The most famous pictures of the canyon were taken here.

Reply

seo January 24, 2015 at 8:15 am

Once the potential customers are at your Web site, however,
it will be up to your Web copy to ‘convert’ them into paying
customers and to keep them at your site. Through search engine optimization companies all over the world are able to effectively expose
their brand to people from all walks of life, which results in increased profits.
Always use the fresh content on your blog
with the use of blog master guidance by use SEO Expert that has created beautifully with relevant and informative contents to attract the visitors.

Reply

dating January 28, 2015 at 9:34 am

A subscription web site will have greater services, and
the Asian females seeking for a romantic relationship could be
much far more marriage minded. He enjoys physical
culture, reading up on the great strongmen of old and chattering
on about Asian religious philosophy. You can learn to be the type of woman that men adore
and never want to leave by visiting You can also visit my website for more information on how to get a guy to commit at href=”.

Reply

yoga jewellery January 28, 2015 at 10:15 am

This is the best way to get the most coverage of your work while simultaneously erecting natural
backlinks as additional people use social media to
advocate your Word – Press blog. SEO copywriting is a way to make your content more attractive
to the search engines while you deliver real value to your visitors.
A pullout zipper bag to store smelly clothes, and pockets both inside and
out, will keep one organized while on the go.

Reply

mentalna aritmetika November 7, 2015 at 3:36 am

This method turns on the right and left brain and helps students
achieve high computing speeds. Cache can be on die (on the
processor chip itself) or off die as a separate chip. Secondly,
already you feel you wish to abide to accompany the game, again you can alpha to anticipate
about affairs your own set of clubs.

Reply

Smartacus October 12, 2020 at 4:00 am

Smartacus Education Center is the first SuanPan school of mental arithmetic in Belgrade, a pioneer in the education and popularization of this skill in the territory of our capital.

Reply

Smartacus February 14, 2021 at 12:44 pm

Obrazovni centar Smartacus je licenciran za sprovođenje nastave Suan Pan mentalne aritmetike, programa koji dokazano utiče na jačanje pažnje, koncentracije, memorije i unapređenje mentalnih potencijala dece.
Program SuanPan mentalna aritmetika je moguće sprovesti samo u detinjstvu, kod dece uzrasta od 5 do 14 godina, dobu kada je razvoj dece najintenzivniji. Program se bazira na upotrebi drevne računaljke – abakusa, uz različite vežbe pažnje i koncentracije koje dodatno doprinose efikasnosti programa.

Reply

canton packedin January 11, 2023 at 1:10 am

Wow its Delicious addition, Thanks for sharing the details of such a sweet recipe.

Reply

Bob Falbo November 24, 2023 at 4:46 am

thanks for taking time to create a helpful article

Reply

Leave a Comment

Previous post:

Next post: