A delicate black cod dish glazed with soy and paired with sweet mango caviar, creating a perfect fusion of Asian flavors and modern presentation.
Black cod, also known as sablefish, is a culinary treasure from the Pacific Ocean. Despite its name, this fish boasts delicate, buttery white flesh with a rich and luxurious flavor. Its versatility makes it a prized ingredient in cuisines worldwide, particularly in Asian and American cooking.
In this recipe, we pair tender black cod with a tangy soy glaze and a unique mango caviar that you create yourself. The sweetness of mango contrasts beautifully with the umami of the soy glaze, elevating the dish to gourmet status. Inspired by Japanese and Asian culinary traditions, this dish delivers a balance of flavors and textures that feel both sophisticated and approachable.
Ingredients
Method
- Bring the litre of water to the boil in the medium saucepan and stir in the tapioca.
- Simmer for 12–15 minutes, stirring often so the pearls don't stick, until they are almost clear with only a tiny white dot in the centre.
- Take the pan off the heat, cover and leave for 10 minutes, until the pearls are completely clear.
- Drain the pearls in the sieve and rinse them under cold water until they separate.
- Mix the mango juice, mirin and lime juice in the small bowl, stir in the pearls and refrigerate for at least 1 hour.
- Put the soy sauce, honey, sake and bonito flakes in the small saucepan and bring to a simmer.
- Simmer gently for 6–8 minutes, until reduced by about a third and syrupy; watch it, as it can boil over and burn.
- Strain out the bonito flakes and let the glaze cool slightly; it thickens as it cools.
- Heat the oven to 180°C (350°F).
- Pat the fish dry with paper towels.
- Brush the fish all over with glaze and leave it for 5 minutes.
- Lay the fillets skin side down on the lined tray and brush the tops again.
- Bake for 10–14 minutes, until the flesh is opaque and flakes when pressed.
- Switch the oven to grill (broil), brush the fish once more and grill for 1–2 minutes, until the edges caramelise; don't walk away, it burns quickly.
- Pull out any visible pin bones with the tweezers.
- Drain the mango pearls well.
- Set a fillet in the centre of each plate, spoon a small mound of mango pearls beside it, add the lime and drizzle a little glaze around.
- Preparing the Cod:
- Pat the black cod fillet dry with paper towels to remove excess moisture.
- Making the Soy Glaze:
- Combine soy sauce, cane syrup or honey, tuna flakes, and sake in a saucepan.
- Simmer on low heat until the mixture thickens into a glaze.
- Preparing the Mango Caviar:
- Blend mango juice, water, mirin, and alginate powder in a blender until smooth.
- Chill the mixture in the refrigerator for 1 hour.
- Prepare a calcium bath by dissolving calcium chloride in 1 liter of water.
- Use a syringe to drop the mango mixture into the calcium bath, forming small caviar-like spheres.
- Remove the mango caviar using a fine sieve and rinse with clean water.
- Cooking the Cod:
- Marinate the cod in the soy glaze for 5 minutes.
- Bake in the oven at 350°F (180°C) for 15 minutes.
- Remove the cod from the oven and carefully remove any bones.
- Serving:
- Place the cod fillet at the center of the plate.
- Add a side of mango caviar and half a lime for garnish.
- Mango 'caviar' made from small tapioca pearls soaked in mango juice and mirin, instead of alginate spheres Sodium alginate and calcium chloride are sold by modernist cooking suppliers, and the spheres need a syringe and practice. Tapioca pearls take on the mango colour and flavour and look much the same.
- Glaze cut to 60 ml soy sauce and 60 ml honey Half a cup of each makes about 200 ml of glaze for one small fillet; most of it would be thrown away.
- Fish raised to two 150 g portions The chef's 200 g for two people is a starter. For a starter, use two 100 g pieces and bake for 8–10 minutes.
- Sake given as 1½ tbsp The list says '1½ tbsp (40 ml)', but 1½ tablespoons is about 22 ml.
- Fish finished for 1–2 minutes under a hot grill 15 minutes at 180°C (350°F) cooks the fish but leaves the glaze pale; a short blast of top heat gives the lacquered finish.
- Black cod can be replaced with Chilean sea bass or skin-on salmon Sablefish is sold fresh mainly in North America and Japan; elsewhere look for it frozen. Sea bass and salmon are rich enough to stand up to the glaze.
The dish in the photograph was cooked by the restaurant for this story. Photo: Oleksandr Slyadnyev.