The ten-Minute, Restaurant-Worthy Dinner I Make A number of Occasions a Month

A few years in the past, when my husband and I visited my mother and father in Hong Kong, we had lunch at a nondescript Japanese restaurant situated within the basement of a mall. My husband was skeptical, however I had eaten there earlier than and knew the meals was good. We had been there for one factor and one factor solely: the miso black cod. Marinated in a salty-sweet combination of white miso, sake, mirin, and soy sauce, the broiled fish arrived glistening and tender, its flesh flaking away simply with the gentlest prod of our chopsticks. Every chunk was deeply savory, with nuttiness from the miso and a floral sweetness from the sake and mirin. 

After I got here again to New York, I attempted to recreate the dish and located quite a few iterations of it on the web. I wasn’t stunned: Miso black cod exploded in reputation after the Japanese chef Nobu Matsuhisa served it at his Tribeca restaurant within the Nineties. “The soy-slicked fish was a must-order, referred to as out even within the restaurant’s earliest evaluations,” the author Hugh Merwin famous in New York Journal in 2014. “A form of fame ensued, and at present, black cod with miso is basically shorthand for the Nobu empire itself.”

Though Matsuhisa didn’t invent the dish—he tells Merwin that his preparation is a riff on a Japanese custom of curing fish in sake lees—he popularized it amongst each restaurant aficionados and residential cooks. Fortunately, the dish is deceptively straightforward to make. So easy, in actual fact, that my husband and I make it frequently: All it’s a must to do is whisk collectively a marinade of crimson or white miso paste, sake, mirin, soy sauce, oil, and sugar, then marinate the fish. You possibly can marinate the fish for as little as half-hour or so long as two days, making it an ideal make-ahead weeknight meal or ceremonial dinner important.

A word on the fish: Regardless of its identify, black cod is not true cod, however a unique species totally—extra precisely generally known as sablefish. Its flesh is tender and buttery, not like the lean, agency texture of Atlantic or Pacific cod. That richness is vital to this recipe’s success. When you can strive different fish, it is best with one thing fatty, like black cod—or, extra accessibly, salmon. 

Former Critical Eats editor Kenji’s miso black cod recipe, which he revealed on the location in 2013, is the model I have been making for so long as I can bear in mind. Kenji recommends broiling the fish, but when you do not have a broiler or do not feel like preheating the oven, you are able to do as I do and crank the warmth on the air fryer. When you go for the air fryer route, maintain an in depth eye on the fish: It usually takes about eight minutes for the fish to complete cooking, however the timing will rely on the scale of your fillets. Served with rice and a few sautéed greens, it makes for a easy and satisfying meal—and one which tastes restaurant-worthy.