Opah with shimegi mushrooms, Choi Sum and Balsamic reduction

I figured that I need a food dish of my own on my blog to give the reader a better idea of my style, and thought process of cooking. The dish pictured in the post is opah, shimegi mushrooms, choi sum (which is a Chinese vegetable), and balsamic reduction. Here is my thought/methods on the dish.

1. Opah is seasoned with salt pepper and cooked only on one side. This creates 4 different textural components to your fish. First you get the crispy bottom, then the well done section and then medium to medium rare. I enjoy cooking Opah this way, but its a little tricky at first.

2. Mushrooms and greens. These add body to the dish and are bitter, but mild in taste. The greens also help cut through the grease from the fish and mushrooms. Its a good garnish to the dish. Mushrooms are cooked with a little butter, garlic and thyme

3. Balsamic reduction. The point of the balsamic reduction is to add some acid and sweetness to counteract the bitterness of the mushrooms and choi-sum. I know that its heavily overused and cliched on the plate, but when something works it works.

Hope you enjoy the picture. Look at the Opah carefully to really see the different degrees of "done-ness."

If you want to try this dish, but don' t have Opah, salmon works well. (see salmon blog).