SEafood & Beef centered Recipes we love

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Courtesy of the Barefoot Contessa

 Serves 6

• 5 tablespoons unsalted butter
• 6 cups chopped leeks, white and light green parts (4 leeks)
• 4 cups (¾-inch) diced peeled Yukon Gold potatoes (1½ pounds)
• 4 cups (¾-inch) diced peeled celery root (2 pounds)
• 3 cups heavy cream
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 24 to 26 large “dry” sea scallops
• 4 tablespoons grapeseed oil, divided
• Basil-infused olive oil, for serving
• Minced fresh chives, for serving

Melt the butter over medium heat in a large (8- to 10-inch) saucepan or Dutch oven. 

Rinse the leeks well in a colander, spin them dry in a salad spinner, and add them to the pot. Sauté them over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until tender but not browned. 

Add the potatoes, celery root, cream, 4 teaspoons salt, and 2 teaspoons pepper to the pot, stir, and bring to a boil. Lower the heat to very low, cover the pot, and simmer gently for 25 to 30 minutes, stirring occasionally, until the vegetables are tender. Be careful—don’t let the vegetables scorch on the bottom of the pan! 

In batches, pour the mixture into the bowl of a food processor fitted with the steel blade and pulse until coarsely puréed. Taste for seasonings, return to the saucepan, and keep warm over very low heat. If the mixture gets too thick, add a little more cream.

If it hasn’t already been removed, peel off the tough strip of muscle on the side of each scallop. Pat the scallops dry with paper towels and season them generously on both sides with salt and pepper. 

Heat two 12-inch sauté pans over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of grapeseed oil to each pan and, when the oil is almost smoking hot, add half the scallops to each pan. Cook undisturbed for about 3 minutes, until golden brown on the bottoms. Don’t crowd the scallops or they’ll steam rather than sear. 

Using a small metal spatula, turn the scallops and cook for 2 to 3 minutes more, until just cooked through. (If the pan is hot enough and you let the scallops cook undisturbed, they won’t stick to the pan.)

Spoon the warm purée onto 6 dinner plates. Place the scallops on the purée, drizzle with the basil oil, and sprinkle with the chives. Serve warm.

Courtesy of Williams-Sonoma 

• 1 côte de boeuf, 4 to 5 lb. (2 to 2.5 kg)
• Extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling
• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 garlic cloves, peeled and smashed
• 3 fresh thyme sprigs
• 2 fresh rosemary sprigs (optional)

Remove the côte de boeuf from the refrigerator and let stand for 1 hour to allow it to come to room temperature.

Preheat an oven to 400°F (200°C).

Drizzle the beef with olive oil, and season all over generously with salt and pepper.

Preheat a large cast-iron fry pan over medium-high heat. Add a drizzle of olive oil to the pan. When the oil is hot, add the côte de boeuf and sear, without moving it, until the meat is well browned on the bottom, 2 to 3 minutes. Turn the meat and sear the other side until well browned, 2 to 3 minutes more. Arrange the garlic, thyme and rosemary around the côte de boeuf.

Transfer the pan to the oven and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the meat, away from the bone, registers 125°F (52°C) for very rare to rare, 20 to 25 minutes, or until done to your liking.

Transfer to a carving board, cover loosely with aluminum foil and let rest for 15 minutes. Carve the meat from the bone, and cut against the grain into slices 1/2 inch (12 mm) thick. Arrange on a warmed platter and serve immediately.

Serves 4 to 6.

Courtesy of A Family Feast

Serves 2

• 1 pound fresh halibut, skinned and cut into 2 equal portions
• 4 tablespoons butter, divided 
• 1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
• ½ teaspoon kosher salt
• Few grinds black pepper
• 3–4 slices lemon (we used Meyer lemons but regular lemon will do)
• 2 teaspoon fresh garlic, finely chopped
• ¼ cup white wine such as Chardonnay
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 2 tablespoon capers drained
• 2 tablespoons fresh flat leaf parsley chopped

Salt the top of the fish with just a small sprinkle of kosher or sea salt. Place two tablespoons of butter and the olive oil in a medium to large skillet or sauté pan and heat over medium heat.

Swirl the butter and oil around and once it starts to slightly brown, add the fish top side down. Sprinkle the side facing up with the rest of the salt and the pepper. Cook for five minutes then using one or two long fish spatulas, gently flip over being careful not to splash hot fat.

Add the lemon slices to the pan as the fish cooks and cook the fish about 3-5 more minutes. Poke the fish to test for doneness or insert a small knife in the side of the center to see if the fish flakes. 

You want to stop the cooking just before it fully cooks so a little undercooked in the center is fine. It will continue to cook outside of the pan.

Using one or two fish turners, remove the fish filets to a platter along with the cooked lemon slices.

Pour off all but two tablespoons of the fat left in the pan. Best to pour it all into a bowl, let the burned bits sink to the bottom then skim off a few tablespoons of the fat at the top and place back into the pan.

Keep the heat at medium and add the garlic and cook one minute. Add the wine and cook to evaporate. Then add the lemon juice, capers and parsley. Cook for a minute then remove from heat and stir in the remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and stir to make the sauce.

Put the fish back into the pan along with any liquid from the platter, bring heat back to medium and use a spoon to spoon the sauce over the top and cook for 30 seconds then remove to a platter and serve. Serve each portion with a cooked lemon slice and some of the pan sauce.

*If the halibut is not already skinned, place the filet on a cutting board close to the edge where you are working. Use a sharp long knife and start the skin by cutting a little and separating the skin from the meat but still attached. Then hold that piece down tight against your board, skin down, while you run the knife between the skin and the fish holding the knife flat. Pull the skin as you move the knife slightly back and forth and the skin will come right off. Cut filet into two equal portions and discard the skin.

Courtesy of Chef Billy Parisi 

Serves 8 

• 1 cup mayonnaise
• 1 garlic clove
• 1 chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
• juice of 1 lime

• 8 seeded and medium diced Roma tomatoes
• 1 peeled and small diced sweet onion
• ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• juice of 1 lemon
• ¼ head of green or red cabbage cored and thinly sliced
• 2 pounds fresh halibut cut into smaller fillets
• 1 cup cornstarch
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 12 ounces Mexican beer
• 16 corn tortillas heated
• sea salt and pepper to taste
• oil for cooking

Mayonnaise: Add the mayo, garlic, chipotle pepper, and lime juice to a food processor and process on high speed until smooth. Set aside in the refrigerator and keep cool.

Preheat oil into a medium-size saucepot and heat until it reaches 350° and holds that temperature. There should be enough oil to fill up about 4” into the pot.

In a large bowl whisk together the cornstarch, flour, beer and salt, and pepper until combined.

Dip the fish one at a time into the batter completely coating it and add it to the hot oil and cook for 5-6 minutes or until browned and cooked throughout.

Fry the fish into batches as to not overcrowd and drain on a paper towel to get rid of any excess oil.

To Plate: place some of the fried fish on a double later of heated corn tortillas and top off with sliced cabbage, salsa, and chipotle mayonnaise and serve.