A Dinner Bargain

Tonight we continue our Greenlandic food adventure with a main dish recipe from The Official Tourism Site of Greenland. I have to say, the tourism department did a convincing job with the website. I had never really considered Greenland among the places I want to see in the world, but the photos are just breathtaking. 

That said, I don’t see us packing up Mr. N and Miss A for a tour of icebergs anytime soon; so until then we’ll live vicariously through the cuisine from the warmth of our own kitchen. Now as we mentioned in our previous post, Greenlandic cuisine is high in protein from marine mammals, fish, game and birds. We did try to get our hands on some caribou to make Greenland’s traditional dish of suaasat, but didn’t have any luck. So we went with our fall back recipe for Pan Fried White Fish and Roasted Vegetables.

We began our recipe by preheating the oven to 375F and gathering our vegetables which included an eggplant, zucchini, red pepper, yellow pepper and spinach.

We chopped the veggies up and tossed them with some olive oil, salt and pepper.

The veggies roasted for about 20 minutes during which time we whipped up the sauce using a shallot, butter, white wine, cream and lemon juice.

As the sauce simmered we then grabbed our tomatoes and salami. We chopped the salami and tossed it along with the tomatoes into the roasted vegetables.

We then set the veggies aside, keeping them warm, while we turned our attention to the fish.

The original recipe called for halibut, but after searching four different grocery stores, we opted to go with cod. We lightly brushed the fillets with olive oil and seasoned them with pepper and a Chardonnay oak smoked salt which we received after winning a giveaway over at Eva’s KitchenInspirations (Thank you Eva!). We then melted some butter in a skillet over high heat and cooked the cod for about a minute on each side before serving it over the roasted vegetables.

The result was a colorful dish full of different flavors.

The fish went over well with Mr. N and Miss A. They both gave the cod 3 spoons. The veggies, however, those got 1 spoon from the kids. I do give them credit though. They did try one piece of the different vegetables on the plate, and I think that as long as they keep that up, they’ll eventually come around. I’ve already gotten Mr. N to eat mushrooms, which as little as a two months ago he swore he would never, ever enjoy.

As for Mike and I, well we came in with different ratings. Mike really enjoyed the cod and agreed with the kids’ 3 spoon vote. He also sided with the kids on the veggies giving them only 2 spoons. He thought it was “too much of a salad bowl,” and not enough of a “melting pot.”

I, however, wasn’t that excited by the fish. It was fine, but just fine. Honestly, I think it’s just that I’m not that into cod. I would definitely be open to trying this with a different white fish – even halibut. Now as for the veggies, those I really enjoyed and gave them a really strong 3 spoons. It actually worked out well for everyone after a little bargaining. I traded my fish for more veggies and they gave up veggies for more fish, making it a win-win all around.

So there you have our first main dish from the Land of the Kalaallit, and we’ve got one more coming your way. Before we get to that, however, we’ll share another recipe from our adventures in Hawaii later this week.

Now before we sign off, we want to throw-out a quick thank you to WordPress for featuring our Greenlandic cake on Freshly Pressed. Mr. N usually gets excited watching the graph for our site traffic, but this unexpected surprise had him just flabbergasted! Thank you also to all the new visitors that left us comments and welcome to all our new subscribers. We hope you enjoy our world cooking experiments and family adventures. And of course a thank you to our long-time readers and blog family. We love ya!

Print this recipe: Pan Fried White Fish with Roasted Vegetables

74 thoughts on “A Dinner Bargain”

  6. hotlyspiced says:
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    Congrats on how well your blog is doing. I have never been to Greenland but I would love to go there – in summer though! That dish looks incredible – so colourful and full of flavour xx

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  8. Sam Wallace says:
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    Your blog is another great find on FP! I absolutely love your idea and have shamelessly stolen it for our family–albeit on a much less ambitious level. My 8 year old loves helping in the kitchen, and we are trying to encourage the kids to eat a wider variety of foods. My husband is Swedish, and we try to bring the culture in whenever we can. So, I presented this idea and gave first country choice to the 8 year old. She chose Ireland, probably coming down from a St. Patrick’s Day streak. Fortuitously, as I actually had our first corned beef already in the crock pot for the following day (yes, I know it’s not really truly Irish. But still.) AND a case of Guinness in the garage. The corned beef sandwiches only got 2 spoons from the Mr. and the girls, but I really think it was the rye bread’s fault, as they all loved the corned beef straight from the crock pot. Thanks for a brilliant idea! I’ve passed your blog along to others already and want to try several of your recipes.

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    • Kristy says:
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      Thank you so much for your comment. I can’t tell you how much it made me smile. 🙂 I imagine the corned beef was fabulous out of the crock pot. I think my kids would have a hard time with rye bread too. It’s such a strong flavored bread. I hope you have a wonderful time on your cooking adventures. It’s been a wonderful experience for us. Thank you again so much. 🙂

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  9. ceciliag says:
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    Oh I had no idea that you had got all famous on us and became freshly pressed. Congrats! That is great! And well deserved. I agree with geni the vegs looked great, a roasted salad bowl would be splendid for me! c

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  10. Geni - Sweet and Crumby says:
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    Congrats on being Freshly Pressed! That’s so exciting. I’m with Mr. N., I like to watch the graph go crazy up as well. Such fun. Thanks for being honest about your reviews. I ALWAYS appreciate that about your Kristy. EVERYTHING can’t be the best ever. That’s what I toy with on my blog. Do I just highlight the best evers? So far I try, but really sometimes you run out of those. The veggies would be my favorite part of the meal also. They look so colorful and I know would be tasty.

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  11. smartfoodandfit says:
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    Congrats, you guys have a great site and deseve the recognition! 🙂
    This is a nice clean eating recipe that I’d enjoy. The veggies are so colorful and the salami gives it a nice flavor too! Hope you are enjoying your week! 🙂

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  12. Courtney says:
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    Yay for being Freshly Pressed! So exciting – you guys deserve all the traffic. 🙂 I think the veggies look so colorful and tasty, which I would think would go well with the fish. Sorry it wasn’t a complete winner for anyone.

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  13. Kate says:
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    Those veggies are looking phenomenal! We often get mixed reviews at our dinner table as well. It happens. Still it’s looking gorgeous though. What a beautiful light dish for the family.

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  15. Caroline says:
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    I’m not super into cod either–I’m more of a halibut or mahi mahi fan. But I’ll of course still eat it. This meal does look delicious though, regardless of the mixed ratings…and so colorful! Great presentation, too, Kristy! 🙂

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  17. ruthpinto says:
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    Congratulations on being Pressed!
    Your photographs and words make all that food look so fresh and healthy and beautiful. I know I shall keep coming back for me (even though I don’t normally care too much for food I can’t get my hands on!)
    From amidst a little hill in India,
    Ruth.

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  18. Three Well Beings says:
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    I think you just picked a tough country, Kristy! The food is bland in comparison to some of the more recent regions! I think the fish is just too mild, but the vegetables are a beautiful contrast and I’d be giving them 3 spoons, for sure! This is definitely a healthy dish, too, so success! I suppose Greenland isn’t too big on adding a little jalapeno, huh? 🙂 Debra

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    • Kristy says:
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      I agree with you! These recipes have been a bit harder to work with than some of the others. Still…we forge on! 🙂 And jalapeno sounds like a great touch.

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  25. Felipe says:
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    Hello, my name is Felipe, i love your site, guys! your family is a beautiful family! congratulations and keep going..

    Best regards, from Brazil!

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  26. Eva kitcheninspirations.wordpress.com says:
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    This is a recipe right up my alley, Kristy, but like you, I am not a lover of cod, so I’ll change it out to Haddock or Halibut, a firmer white fish. I would love the veggies…very nice. That’s incredible that Mr. N came around to the shrooms so quickly; my GF did that with her kid, serve it often enough and they will come around. Works like a charm. Her kid is now 10 and eats oysters and sushi (not sure if she thinks this was a great idea, that kid could put away $30 in oysters in no time!)
    That’s so cool to be featured on Freshly Pressed! Congrats!

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    • Kristy says:
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      Thank you Eva! And I think with Halibut this might be more up my alley too. And I can just imagine the checks taking adventure eaters out to dinner. Mr. N and I spent $80 one night, just the two of us! It’s a good thing we like to cook at home! Ha! 🙂

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  27. Kelly says:
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    I love that fish – and blubber – is the mainstay of the Greenlander diet. I’m guessing you may not have used the traditional fishing method of spear and kayak for this catch (although I wouldn’t put it past your adventurous family! ;-)). Too bad you couldn’t find halibut but you did a great job with the cod and most of the family liked it. I love all the colourful veggies in this dish and the lemon sauce sounds absolutely delicious.

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    • Kristy says:
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      LOL! I love it Kelly. I can just see Miss A spearing a fish. 😉 (And a little secret…we found halibut for the next one.) And the sauce was definitely delicious – I’d love it over mussels even more. Yum!

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  29. ChgoJohn says:
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    Oh, I dunno, Kristy. I love cod and thought the way the veggies were being cooked sounded great. This dish seemed like a winner to me and I’m kind of surprised at your team of experts’ ratings. I guess I’ll just have to try it for myself.

    Great news, by the way, about the Freshly Pressed spotlight being focused on your efforts here. Congrats! 🙂

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    • Kristy says:
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      Let us know if you do. I’d be curious to hear your thoughts. I was surprised that Mike didn’t like the vegetables because I thought they were fantastic. I was really the only one that didn’t like the fish, but honestly I think it’s that I’m just not that into cod. 🙂

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  30. Norma Chang says:
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    Your photos are fantastic, I need to take some lessons from you. Healthy and colorful meal, I wondered if allowing the fish to stand for 15 minutes with the seasoning before cooking would make a difference.

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  32. Charles says:
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    Hi Kristy, congratulations on being “pressed” 😀

    Your dish looks really colourful and tasty – good, simple flavours, but I totally agree with you about the cod. It can be delicious, but I like it as part of “fish and chips”, and then it’s usually encased in batter :p I wonder if maybe using a tastier fish – salmon maybe – might fix this? As for the veg – I wonder if steaming it slightly first, before roasting it, would make it softer and more like a “melting pot” instead of a salad bowl – still looks great though! Looking forward to seeing your next one 🙂

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    • Kristy says:
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      Thanks Charles! I’m with you on the cod – I prefer it beer-batter dipped. LOL. 😉 You know I wonder if Mike would have liked the veggies more if they were steamed first. Me, I liked the salad bowl effect. I was able to taste each veggie on its own. The next one…well, let’s just say it was an interesting dinner. Mike and I are hoping to pull one more off for Greenland too, but it will take a bit of experimenting first. 🙂

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  33. fati's recipes says:
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    Yeah, I was surprised to see you guys freshly pressed… that was a great post, I won’t deny… congrats! 🙂

    I couldn’t really give an opinion on this dish because I don’t eat salami, and roast veggies aren’t the most exciting thing… 🙂 But thanks for sharing it, it’s always good to learn about the foods other cultures enjoy 😀

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  34. Purely.. Kay says:
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    CONGRATS ON YOUR FRESHLY PRESSED HONOR!!! That is such a HUGE deal and of course you completely deserve it :). I am going to name Mr. N as your official tech support too lol. I actually love this dish with the veggies. I love cod so that’s not a stretch, but I also love halibut so I’d be open to trying this and I know I will most likely love it

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