Black Cod Misoyaki

Cranky cranky cranky was I all morning. It all started when I encountered the black Ford Expedition. This unaware woman is parked outside my daughter's preschool every day with her engine running. She's always there when I arrive, while I sign my daughter in and chat with her teachers (sometimes this can take 20 minutes), just sitting there with her engine running. It makes me wish that gas prices would reach $15/gallon. Maybe unawares like her will be forced to trade in their SUVs for bikes.

Moving right along, hissing and snapping at everyone and everything in my way, I realized that I hadn't eaten yet. So I took my own advice: eat a small amount of protein every three hours. I pulled into a local joint and enjoyed 2 eggs over-medium with whole wheat toast. Aah, relief!

Keeping up with protein intake every three hours, I have to come up with sources besides nuts, string cheese, yogurt and smoked salmon to keep things varied. Today I discovered bee pollen. Each tablespoon has only 25 calories and 2 grams of protein. Just two tablespoons fit the bill. I like the taste so much that my challenge is not eating the whole bag.

On to the real reason for this blog, a healthy recipe: I was entranced by this dish the first time I ever dined at Matsuhisa. 15 or more years passed before I found various recipes on how to make it. The following works really well for me.

1/4 cup sake (regular cooking sake from the ethnic section of the grocery store is fine)

1/4 cup mirin (also found in the ethnic section)

1/2 cup white miso

2 6-oz filets black cod

Combine the sake and mirin in a saucepan and gently bring to a boil over medium heat. Remove from heat and patiently whisk in the miso, working out the lumps. Place in a small shallow bowl which fits the filets snugly and allow to cool completely. Then sink the filets into the miso, cover completely with the mixture and refrigerate for 2-3 days.

Remove the filets from the miso mixture and wipe off the excess marinade. Broil for 15 minutes, skin side up. The result is a melt-in-your-mouth white fish with a caramelized crispy crust...  Did you really think my kids would eat this stuff?