The Flavor from My Mom’s Kitchen

One of the major projects at Level5 in French Culinary Institute was "Menu Project". Each student needs to create his/her own menu (at least three-course meal) with a theme and wine paring for at least one dish. My first aim for the menu project was focusing on flavor profiles that I know well, and the second was focusing on techniques that I have learned.
So... the result was...

"Contemporary French foods
with the flavor from my mom’s kitchen thousands of miles away".

Yes, that was the title for my menu project.
The following recipe is one of them from my menu project - I modified the original recipe little bit to avoid any cooking terms which are not familiar to most of you:

...the Third course:

Korean traditional dining always includes 1 bowl of rice, 1 bowl of soup for each person and various ‘ban-chan’ (small side dishes) to share. My mother loves seafood. She often cooks Korean fermented soybean paste soup with spinach & clam, and various seafood side dishes such as soy sauce marinated baked granular arks, grilled fish, spicy stir-fried baby octopus among many others.

This recipe contains both my mother’s fermented soybean paste soup taste in the jus* and seafood ‘ban-chan’ element in a pan seared cod. I reduced the saltiness and pungent flavor of Korean fermented soybean paste by adding heavy cream to the jus.
* "Jus" means very thin and light sauce.


Pan Seared Cod & Steamed Clams
with Cream Spinach Soybean Paste Jus
Inspired by my mom's “Shi-kum-chi Duen-jang-guk” (시금치 된장국 , Spinach Korean fermented soybean paste soup)

(Yield: 4 servings / Cooking time: one and a half hour)

Ingredients:
+ 800g black cod, skin-on (portioned by 4 pieces, each 200g)
+ 24 short neck clams (8 clams for clam stock and 16 for garnish)
+ 40g spinach
+ 1/2 tsp Korean fermented soybean paste
+ 1/2 cups heavy cream
+ 2 cups water
+ 1/2 shallot
+ 1 clove of garlic (crushed)
+ 1/2 cup dry white wine
+ a few springs of thyme
+ 25g Butter
+ clarified butter or grape seed oil (or any neutral oil is fine e.g. canola oil)
+ extra virgin olive oil
+ salt and pepper for seasoning

Procedures:
First, we are going to prepare the seafood (black cod and clams). Then, steam some of the clams, and make jus for the dish. Finally, sear the fishes in a hot pan and assemble the dish.

[Preparing the seafood]
+ Black cod: you can ask to portion the fish at the market or you can buy pre-portioned fish. 200g portion in my ingredient section is a guideline - please feel free to portion your fish for your desirable portion.
+ Clams: please disgorge your clams - if your clams are not aquacultured and cleaned, they have sands inside the shells and the sands can ruin your dishes! Please soak your clams in heavily salted water (salt : water = at least 1cup : 3quarts) for 30min (at least) to a few hours in a refrigerator. Discard the water and any sands and put the clam under running water for 15 minutes before use.

[Steamed Clams]
1. Finely diced(ciseler) shallot and sweat with butter in a pot. Add crushed garlic and sweat.


2. Add white wine, thyme and 16 clams and cover the pot.


3. When clams opened fully, remove them from the pot and shock in ice water. Separate out the flesh and shells. Strain the liquid from clams through a fine strainer and make sure there are no inedible impurities in the strained liquid. Reserve the liquid.

"Shock" in ice water

Strain the liquid from clams


4. Cut the clams to about 7mm x 7mm size. If the clams are small enough, just keep as they are.

[Cream Spinach Soybean Paste Jus]
1. Reduce the liquid from steamed clam by half. Place 8 clams in 2 cups of cold water into the reduced liquid and bring to boil.
2. Add a half teaspoon Korean fermented soybean paste and boil another 20 min.
3. Discard clams and pass through fine strainer and again, make sure there are no inedible impurities in the strained liquid. Reserve the liquid.
4. In a new pot, bring heavy cream to boil and turn the heat off as soon as it starts simmer. Set aside the hot heavy cream.
5. Blanch spinach in salted boiling hot water, shock in ice water immediately and squeeze out all excess water.
From hot water to ice water

Squeeze out all the excess water


6. In a blender, blend clam jus from #3 and spinach from #5 until the liquid have very smooth texture. Pour the blended liquid into a pot and add heavy cream from #4. Taste the jus and, if needed, adjust the seasoning with salt.


[Searing Cods]
1. Season the cods with salt and pepper both skin and flesh side.
2. In a very hot pan, sear the pieces with clarified butter (or grape
seed oil*) - skin side first, until the skin is crispy... while basting the non-skin side of the fish. Flip the fish and cook the other side until done (a few second if your fish is thin). Set aside on wired rack to drain excess oil.
*Ideally, I would recommend using clarified butter (it is more traditional French way... of course! it is butter!). However, if you have any health concern or just do not have clarified butter, you can use just neutral oil


Tips: How to check if the fish is cooked
1. If the fish is thin, observe the color of the flash side. Turn off your heat just when the color is turned into opaque. Please do not overcook your fish... fish should be very smooth and tender.
2. If your fish is thick, please use cake tester and poke around your fish (three points - each ends and center). You should not feel any resistant. But again, please be careful not to overcook your fish. Cake tester is just $1... but a really good investment!

[Final assembly]
Pour the jus (about two to three table spoons for each dish) on the bottom of a deep plate, and place steamed clams in the middle. On the clams, place a seared cod and garnish with small spinach leaves and extra virgin olive oil.




Wine Pairing:
Sancerre Domaine La Croix St. Laurent 2006
The dry unoaked and sharply acidic French Sauvignon Blanc would balance well with the saltiness of soybean paste and clam flavor. Also, the wine would brighten the green fresh flavor from spinach and olive oil with its bracing tang.