Piccata sauce is simple to make. It contains lemon juice, butter, and capers and is traditionally served over meat or chicken. Use any kind of firm, mild fish and you’ll have a delicious dinner on the table in no time at all. It’s also delicious over chicken or thinly pounded pork!
Oh, how my husband loves Halibut! It’s a tender, firm, white fish that has such a mild flavor. He particular loves Alaskan Halibut, though our own Monterey Bay Halibut is pretty good too– when it’s in season.
I don’t buy Halibut often because I prefer to buy it fresh (not frozen), and it can cost an average of $25.00 a pound–at today’s prices. I spotted fresh Canada caught Halibut at our local Whole Foods so I splurged and bought a one pound filet slice. My first thought was to make a Beurre Blanc Sauce, like I’ve previously made with our local Monterey Halibut. Buuuuut, I wanted to keep the calories down a bit. I have lots of lemons, from our tree. Got it! I’ll make a picatta sauce. It’s fast, simple and delicious.
I have to share with you a Garlic Twister that I purchased a couple of months ago. It took me a few tries to get the hang of it, and now I prefer it over my other garlic press. Why? I can easily mince several garlic cloves at once. I learned to cut the cloves up into smaller chunks.
You put the lid on, and twist. I learned to twist in one direction, and then the other, a few times. Voila! Minced garlic cloves. Now, for the other ingredients:
Lemons, sliced and juiced. Garlic, a little white Wine and capers. Capers! I used to hate them, and I’d pick them out of any dish where I spotted them. Nowadays, I’ve learned to like them. So, leave them out, if you don’t like them.
The star of the show– beautiful Halibut. Pat it dry, and season with salt and pepper. My oven is preheated to 450 F and my cast iron skillet is heating on medium-high heat.
I’ve got all of my remaining ingredients prepped and ready to go– shallots, Vermouth (works as well as white wine), and a little low-sodium chicken broth.
The cast-iron skillet is smoking hot with a little avocado oil (it has a higher sear point than olive oil). Skin side up, I’m searing the fish until golden brown. I always use my beloved fish spatula to gently flip the fillet over. It’s ready to be flipped when it no longer sticks to the pan. Once the fillets are flipped, skin side down, the entire skillet goes into the oven for about 15 minutes (130F-135F).
The fish is removed, and now for the fast and easy sauce. Don’t clean out the skillet; add a touch more oil and saute the shallots, lemon slices and garlic.
Add the wine (if using) and/or the chicken broth, fresh parsley and capers (if using). Because the fish wasn’t coated in flour, the sauce was a bit thinner than I prefer. I keep Wondra flour in my pantry, so I sprinkled about 1 tablespoon into the sauce, and whisked until combined. I tasted the sauce to see if I need to add more salt or pepper (I didn’t). Off heat, I added a pat of butter and gave the sauce a final whisk.
In a separate pan, I wilted fresh spinach with garlic olive oil, salt and pepper and I made Yukon Gold mashed potatoes.
TASTING NOTES: Start to finish in 45 minutes. Yes, I’ve evolved into a good multi-tasker– making two side dishes to go with this restaurant quality dinner. Piccata sauce is one of my favorite fast and flavorful sauces. Once I tallied up the cost of the fish and side dishes, I was pleased to know that we saved a lot of money by eating at home. I am so looking forward to when Monterey Bay Salmon and Halibut season opens up again. This sauce is a perfect recipe to keep in my back pocket.
Easy and Healthy Halibut Piccata
Ingredients
- 4 8 oz halibut fillets or any firm, white fish
- 3 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 cup shallots chopped; or onion
- 4 cloves garlic minced
- 2 Tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice about 1 large lemon
- 1 lemon thinly sliced
- 1/2 cup white wine or substitute chicken broth
- 1 Tbsp capers drained; optional
- 1 Tbsp salted butter
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- freshly chopped parsley Optional garnish
Instructions
- Pat fish fillets dry with paper towel and season with salt and pepper. Preheat oven to 450F
- In an extra large skillet, heat 2 Tablespoons olive oil over medium high heat until oil is hot. Add fish to skillet (cook in batches if needed, to avoid overcrowding.) Cook, skin side up, for 2-3 minutes, then flip over (I use a fish spatula). Place into the preheated oven and roast for about 15 minutes, until done. (130F-135F). Carefully remove the skillet from the oven, covering the handle so you don't accidentally grab it and burn your hand (from personal experience). Remove the fish, loosely cover and keep warm.
Make the sauce:
- Without cleaning the skillet out, add 1 Tablespoon olive oil to same skillet over medium high heat. When oil is hot, add the shallots and garlic, stirring 1-2 min until fragrant. Add lemon juice and lemon slices, scraping pan if needed to loosen any browned bits. Cook until lemon slices are nicely browned. Add the wine (and/or chicken broth) and capers. Off heat, add the butter and whisk until dissolved into the sauce.NOTE: Since the fish wasn't coated with flour,the sauce will be thin. I added about 1 Tbsp. of Wondra flour and whisked together until the sauce reached the consistency that I liked. Pour lemon mixture over fish and serve. Garnish with freshly chopped parsley, if desired.
Notes
That looks amazing!!!
Thank you!