Whenever we buy out of season fruits and vegetables on the east coast they always come from California. So while I was in California over the New Years holiday I was so excited when I could pick up a fresh heirloom tomato in January and have it say grown in California!
The variety of fresh local produce at the market down the street from my friend’s house in Berkeley astounded me. I had to get my hands on some and cook. So as payment from my stay out their house I cooked dinner for him and his entire family of six one night.
I had no idea what to make going in but went into the butcher shop first to grab a local chicken. Knew I could easily figure out something to do with that. Next I went to the fishmonger. Not as many choices as the markets on Arthur Ave but some good looking fish. I was having trouble picking a fish. Then I saw opah a fish I had never heard of before let alone seen at a store but it was caught off the coast of California so I had to get it knowing I would probably never see it again.
After some googling I realized I had seen the fish before on TV on some sort of challenge show. Working off of some website recipes I decided to pan sear the opah leaving the center a little pink still and make a blood orange reduction for it.
For the chicken I just simply roasted it in the oven with baby shiitake mushrooms.
This really excited me. Fresh, ripe, heirloom tomatoes. I love tomatoes now even though up until a few years ago I couldn’t eat a raw tomato. But that was probably because I had never had a good tomato. Heirlooms blow the classic reds out of the water so I when I saw a rainbow of them I grabbed as many colors as I could. Simply chopping and tossing them with a balsamic vinaigrette with Thai basil and mint.
I also grabbed a some bok choy and scallions with I just braised until soft.
Then I just roasted some fingerling potatoes.
The dinner came together better then I was expecting and even though I had all of the stuff going on at once I didn’t burn or undercook anything. I am getting better at that because in the past I had trouble with two things. But I can probably give credit to the quality of produce to the meal tasting so good. I am not that good. Yet.
