Souse Vide - Haddock
Haddock is one of the choicest fishes in my local North Atlantic waters, and is by far my favorite fish on the dinner table. I’m fortunate to live where I can easily obtain a variety of fish fresh from the boat or fishmonger, even from the local grocery store fish counters. Haddock is quite delicate, but can be cooked in a variety of ways; excellent for fish & chips or baked in packets, but very nice in chowders, poached, or cooked Sous Vide.
The same recipe can be applied to pollock, cod, and other lean fishes, tho cod often has nematode “cod worms” that can be problematic if consumed live; these are killed by freezing in a domestic freezer for 7 days, or at ‐35°C (‐31°F) for 15 hours, or by cooking to 145°F for fifteen seconds, a temperature that will render fish quite unpalatable; nevertheless it may be disturbing to come across one, alive or dead, in a delicately cooked piece of fish (the only thing worse than finding a worm in your fish is finding half a worm); I prefer not to Sous Vide or poach cod or to use it in chowders, and prefer to cook it conventionally to high temperatures. Given the choice, I’m highly partial to haddock anyway. Haddock, as well as all oceanic fish, is reported to potentially host nematode worms, but I’ve never come across one in fish other than cod. If you’re particularly concerned, use fish that’s been frozen or freeze at -4°F (-20°C) or below for at least seven days and thaw in a plastic bag under cold water before cooking. It might be possible to cook fish Sous Vide directly from frozen, but the timing would be difficult to avoid overcooking.
Fresh or thawed Haddock filet(s), portioned to fit in Sous Vide bags; dry surfaces with paper towels & rub generously with kosher or Himalayan salt (for a dry brine to improve texture).
Place in Sous Vide bag with 1/2 tblsp olive oil / serving-sized filet (use a good quality extra-virgin olive oil) (in general, avoid added oil for Sous Vide meats; lean fish tho are a notable exception)
Aromatics (pepper, thinly-sliced shallots or scallions, garlic, rosemary, &c.) may be added to the bag; I prefer not to.
As haddock is very moist, vacuum sealing is not a good option; fish juices (and the added olive oil) would likely be sucked up into the pump. The water displacement technique is a better option.
Cook at 130°F, 30-60 minutes; I did 30 minutes, but there will be little or no difference between 30 & 60 minutes; avoid tho extending cooking time beyond an hour. The result will be quite delicate & buttery in texture. If you prefer your fish drier & flakier, cook at 135°F.
Remove from bag carefully; will be exceedingly delicate.
Dry thoroughly with paper towels & rest briefly to cool so’s to not overcook when searing.
Pan sear at least the presentation side (or both sides) in hot oil or butter; I used butter, heated to begin to brown before adding the fish; handle gently with a slotted fish spatula.