Pan-Fried Halibut With Spiced Chickpea and Herb Salad

By Yotam Ottolenghi

Published September 11, 2018

  • Andrew Scrivani for The New York Times
Media 1 of 1
Total Time
50 minutes
Rating
5(722)
Comments
Read comments

Fresh spinach, herbs and spring onions come together here in a salad with crispy chickpeas, which is served with halibut and a punchy yogurt sauce for a quick and delicious supper. The Persian lime powder is optional; it can be purchased ground, or you can start with a whole dried Persian lime, roughly crush it with the side of a knife and then grind to a fine powder in a spice grinder. This recipe doesn’t really need anything alongside, but some good bread could easily bulk it up. Turn it into a great vegetarian salad by eliminating the fish and adding some extra chickpeas.

Featured in: Yet Another Way to Eat Your Spinach

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: Give recipes to anyone

    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.

    Subscribe

  • Share this recipe

  • Print this recipe

    or to print this recipe.

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

  • ⅓ cup/60 milliliters olive oil

  • 1 teaspoon ground cumin

  • 1 teaspoon ground coriander

  • ¼ teaspoon ground Persian lime powder (optional)

  • 2 garlic cloves, crushed

  • ¾ teaspoon kosher salt

  • 2 lemons (finely grate the zest to get 2 teaspoons, juice to get 2 tablespoons and cut the remaining into wedges)

  • 4 skinless boneless halibut fillets, patted dry (about 1 pound/410 grams total)

  • 1 can chickpeas (15.5 ounces/400 grams), drained and patted dry

  • ⅓ cup plus 1 tablespoon/80 grams plain yogurt

  • ¼ packed cup/10 grams cilantro (coriander) leaves

  • 2 packed tablespoons parsley leaves

  • 4 spring onions, finely sliced

  • 1 small bunch large-leaf spinach, firm stems removed, leaves finely sliced

  • 1 or 2 mild green chiles, such as Anaheim, to taste, finely sliced and seeds removed if you like

  • Salt

  • 2 tablespoons vegetable oil

Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

37 grams carbs; 205 milligrams cholesterol; 777 calories; 18 grams monosaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 5 grams saturated fat; 31 grams fat; 11 grams fiber; 1681 milligrams sodium; 88 grams protein; 9 grams sugar

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Marinate the fish and chickpeas: In a small bowl, mix the first 6 ingredients together with the lemon zest. Add 2 ½ tablespoons of marinade to a bowl with the halibut and mix well. Add 2 tablespoons of the marinade to a separate bowl with the chickpeas and stir to combine. Set both aside at room temperature for 20 minutes. Mix the remaining marinade together with the yogurt and set aside.

  2. Step 2

    Meanwhile, in a mixing bowl, blend the herbs together with the spring onions, spinach, chiles, lemon juice and a good pinch of salt.

  3. Step 3

    Heat a large nonstick frying pan over medium-high heat, then add ½ tablespoon of vegetable oil. Add the chickpeas (and bits of garlic) and fry for 6 minutes, stirring every now and then until crisp and golden-brown. Transfer to a plate and wipe the pan clean.

  4. Step 4

    Return the pan to a medium-high heat with the remaining 1 ½ tablespoons of vegetable oil. Add the halibut fillets, spaced apart, and fry for 3 minutes on one side, then flip and fry for another 2 minutes on the other side until both sides are crisp and golden brown.

  5. Step 5

    Very carefully transfer the fillets to a large platter. Toss the chickpeas gently with the salad, then transfer the salad to the platter next to the halibut fillets. Drizzle half of the yogurt over the salad and serve with the lemon wedges and the remaining yogurt sauce alongside.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Ratings

5 out of 5
722 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Comments

Randy

You can substitute ground sumac for the dried lime...very similar flavor and much easier to find. That said, ground dried Persian lime is one of those ingredients which, after you have begun using it, you'll find yourself using it more frequently. If used sparingly, it has can enhance and elevate the other flavors of a dish without overwhelming. In my pantry it is in a category with Pomegranate Molasses, anchovy and sherry vinegar: subtle but powerful flavor builders.

Joel

Our local fish store did not have halibut so I used cod. It was delicious. I also served it with basmati rice.

Diane

Substitute sumac for Persian line powder, Todd works well also

Hypatia

Quite delicious. Made as written, with dried lime. First time I have used dried lime and it’s worth searching out: deep lime umami flavor. No need for a side starch if you have strawberry rhubarb pie for dessert. Just saying.

HanTran

baked at 450 for chicks for 25 minutes and 400 when fish added. save some dishes, marinate chick peas and fish in same dish you bake in (remove fish to a plate when chicks go into oven). This is a great recipe and the dressing is lovely.

Dana

We have made this twice for out of town guests. Halibut is such a special Pacific Northwest treat in my book. Loved by everyone!! No leftovers. We substituted with sumac as others suggested. Perfect!

Private comments are only visible to you.

Recipe Tags

or to save this recipe.