Pan Seared Cod With Herb Brothy Beans

This is one of those meals that feels fancy and elegant. But in reality, it's very inexpensive, very easy, and comes together in less than 20 minutes. In my opinion, those are the best kinds of showstopper meals!

Let's talk about brothy beans. This is a concept that I learned about in my local online supper club, and I think it's pretty genius. We're going to cheat a little bit and use store bought, canned beans. But, that's part of what helps this dish come together so quickly. So basically, we make a flavorful broth, throw in some beans, and call it dinner! It's not quite soup, but a lighter more delicate soup like idea.

To make our broth, we're going to add a bunch of stuff to a blender, hit the button, and heat it up. It's sooooo easy! So, we'll take some chicken stock, a little water, some lemon juice for brightness, olive oil for richness, and 3 types of herbs: parsley, basil, and chives; and we'll put all of that straight into a blender along with a pinch of salt and pepper. We'll blend everything until it's liquified, give it a taste, adjust the seasoning as needed, then strain the liquid through a sieve into a saucepan. That's it! That's the broth! Then we'll add in our canned beans, and let both gently heat together until they're warmed through.

Meanwhile, we can be working on our fish. Cod is a very delicate white fish that is kind of a blank canvas. It's pretty mild. But, it's also very inexpensive which makes it a great option for this low cost meal. If you can't find or don't love cod, you could substitute another white fish like halibut or even tilapia.

To season our cod, we're going to use a mix of salt, pepper, garlic powder, and aleppo pepper. We'll pat our fish with a paper towel to make sure it's nice dry, then we'll sprinkle our seasoning all over both sides of the fish. Then, to a hot pan it goes to cook in some olive oil until it's nice and golden and just cooked through. Now, cod is very delicate, so you need a gentle hand while flipping it and removing it from the pan. However if it breaks while you're trying to move it, that's ok! That's what garnishes are for. ;-)

When we're ready to serve, we'll ladle our beans and broth into a shallow bowl. Then, we'll add some lemon slices for extra flavor and extra wow factor. And finally, we'll lay our fish right on top and finish with some fresh radish microgreens for extra color and a pop of crispness.

This meal, despite being so simple and so inexpensive, is so impressive. The broth is light and bright. But, it's also so fresh and so green. Those beans are rich and buttery adding a nice creamy component to the dish. And, that fish on top is savory and juicy and rich and soft all at the same time. So when you get a spoonful of all three in one bite, you're truly firing on all cylinders.

And if you think about it, you can grow most of this meal right in your own backyard/windowsill/porch. And really, could anything make a dish taste more delicious than knowing that you literally made it from scratch?

I've got big dreams for next year's garden, so if there are any garden gurus out there, please hit me up. I need all the help I can get!

In the meantime, enjoy! And, let's eat!