What's Cooking With Dive? Jehovah's Halibut

Mmmm … Halibut!

Second only to the magnificent turbot in the world of flatfish yumminess.

Don't just take my word for it, go watch "Life Of Brian,"
As Matthias, son of Deuteronomy of Gath said at his stoning:"That piece of halibut was worthy of Jehovah."

So … at the risk of being stoned to death (as opposed to merely being stoned), let's hear it for halibut!YAY, HALIBUT!
Here's a dish worthy of any deity you might choose to worship.
I don't choose to worship any of them myself, but at a push, my deity of choice would be Steve Albini.
Steve, you have an open invitation to dinner any time.
Anyhoo …You know the drill: Get your pinnies on and let's go trash the kitchen.

Right … What kind of things do halibut dream of meeting in the culinary afterlife (the après-vie, as Arthur Dent would have it)?

By flukey coincidence I was talking to a halibut just the other day and it told me to stock up on these:

- Organic single cream (or whatever the equivalent is in the Colonies … quick update: thank you, Robyn; apparently it is called half-and-half - or haff'n'haff if you're from Ohio … hee hee);
- Organic new potatoes;- Capers (the village store was shit out of organic, so slap me hard);
- Organic unwaxed lemons;
- Organic watercress;
- Lemon thyme from the garden;
- Mint from the garden;- Parsley from the windowcill;
- Organic artichoke hearts (I used canned for this as I find whole artichokes are a pain in the ass unless they are to be the main ingredient … I'm a lazy bastard);
- A whole bunch of prawns;- A fragrant, spicy, intensely glorious wine worthy of the demise of a noble halibut (as in so many other splendid occasions in life, Gewurtztraminer is the only way to go here).

Oh, and a stonking great halibut steak!
Halibut - while not quite in the same "bankers' bonus" league as turbot - is decidedly not cheap, so you don't want to waste what can be an orgasmic experience by skimping on your other ingredients.
This chunk cost me £8.50 but it was worth every last penny.
Holy frijole, it tasted so gooooood!

So …Let's get simple.
This is a dish that even George W. Bush couldn't fuck up.
Yes, it really is that plain dumb simple.

First up: pre-heat the oven to gas mark 5 (that's the equivalent of something or other if you have an electric oven. I have no idea).

Next up: fire up the hob, grab a saucepan, throw in the spuds and mint, cover 'em in water (no salt … you know my views on that) and away we go.

All you have left to do is to grab a hold of the rest of that bunch of ingredients, pour over a generous glass of Gewurtztraminer to thank the halibut for sacrificing its life on the altar of yumminess, slap a knob of organic, unsalted Irish butter on the top and parcel up the whole shebang in foil.
Here's a piece of advice: no matter how tight you wrap it, some cream and stuff is going to escape so I put mine in a nice Le Creuset fish-baking dish to catch the glop.

As soon as the potato water starts boiling, stick your fish and glop in the oven and go do the Guardian Saturday Prize Crossword (that's my twenty-minute timer).
Peel back the foil and check it after twenty minutes or so. I checked mine after twenty-five as I had a really thick steak - it still needed a few more minutes so I drained the potatoes while I waited.

When it's done, pop it on a plate with some more watercress, mint leaves and a lemon and tuck in!
Voilà! Halibut Baked With All Sorts Of Stuff.
Mmmmmm … Zowee! Pretty much piscatorial perfection.
Yes, I know there's enough there to serve two … why d'you think I'm such a fat bastard?

Enjoy!
I certainly did.