Black Sea Bass with Leek Hush Puppies, Andouille Sausage and Local Little Neck Clam etouffee

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Charlie Unger

Yield: 4 portions

For the fish: 1 lb of black sea bass fillet, portion into 4 equal portions

Sear the Sea bass skin side down in a hot pan when all components of the dish come together.

For the Leek hushpuppy:

Ingredients

• ½ c flour
• ½ c cornmeal
• 1 egg
• 1 teaspoon baking soda
• ½ c thinly sliced leeks
• 1 teaspoon salt
• ¾ c buttermilk
• 2 tablespoons honey

Procedure:

To make leek hushpuppies first mix the dry ingredients, flour, salt cornmeal, and baking soda and mix with a whisk. Next mix together the wet ingredients, buttermilk, honey, and egg. Lastly, mix the wet ingredients into the dry ingredients, once mixed add the sliced leeks.

To fry: Using a heavy pot or sauce pot fill halfway with frying oil and heat to 350F. Once at 350F fry hushpuppies by dropping 1 to 2 oz of batter into the oil and fry until both sides are golden brown and cooked all the way.

For the Braised leeks:

Ingredients

• 2 whole leeks
• 1 clove garlic minced
• 1 cup fish stock
• 1 T salt
• ½ t black pepper

Procedure:

Cut the tops off leeks and reserve for the leek hushpuppies. Take the bottom of the leeks and cut the leek into 2 in cylinders, wash good to get out any dirt. To cook, sear the leeks on both sides in a sauté pan with oil, sear the leeks like a scallop then deglaze the pan with fish stock, add garlic and seasoning and braise in the oven for 30 min at 350F.

For the clam etouffee:

Ingredients

• 1- dozen clams
• 2 oz butter
• 2 oz flour
• ½ red and green bell pepper, small diced
• 1 stalk of celery, small diced
• ½ Yellow onion small diced
• 3 cups fish stock
• ¼ t cayenne
• ½ t cumin
• 1 t salt

Procedure:

To make etouffee, first clean the clams in ice and cold water to remove any sand. Next, make the base of the sauce, which is a brown roux, melt butter in a 2 qt sauce pot then add the flour and mix until smooth. Keep mixing at med heat and adjust the heat so that the roux does not burn but that it is slowly developing color. The roux should take about 15-30 min depending on the level of heat, it should look like milk chocolate. Once the roux has a milk chocolate hue add the onions, celery and bell peppers and sweat for 5 min or until the onions are translucent. Once translucent deglaze with fish stock and season with cumin, cayenne, and salt. When pouring in the fish stock pour in slowly and mix vigorously so the roux does not clump up. Mix until smooth and reduce until it forms a sauce like consistency. When plating adds clams to the sauce and cook until the clams open, remove and get all components ready to plate.