Coconut and lime poached white fish with baby bok choy

This recipe is one my mom gave me that was ripped out of the current edition of Better Homes and Gardens magazine. She thought that I would like it and was correct! I thought that it sounded quite delicious. I also thought it would be a perfect dinner to make during this little warm spell we've been having. I used flounder in my recipe, but you can use any white fish that you want (skinless and boneless filets) and that looks good. I adapted the recipe a little bit to the one below because I added some ginger and scallions to the broth as well as rice to make this a more filling meal. I'm a sucker for a good Asian-inspired broth and this one had all the sweet, spicy, salty, and sour that you would expect. Bok choy isn't something that I cook with very often and I'm not sure why. I have seen it all around our farmers' market this fall. I like the baby ones because they are very tender (and cute), but you can get a larger head and cut it into strips if that's all you can find.

This recipe will serve two people as a main course with the rice. I used jasmine rice, but basmati or any long grain rice would work nicely.

Coconut and lime poached white fish with baby bok choy
1 can (13-15 oz.) coconut milk
1 lime
1 tablespoon turbinado sugar
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1-inch ginger root, cut into 4-5 coins
3 scallions, thinly sliced, greens and whites separated
1 small jalapeno (or other green chili), thinly sliced
2 filets of white fish (about 3/4 lb. total), cut into about 1-inch strips
4 heads baby bok choy, bottoms trimmed and leaves separated
1 cup (dry) jasmine rice, cooked to package directions

Start cooking the rice. Zest the lime and reserve it for serving.

In a large pan, add the coconut milk, juice of the lime, sugar, salt, ginger, scallion whites, and jalapeno. Warm over medium-low heat, stirring occasionally. Add the fish and cover the pan. Cook for about 5-7 minutes, or until the fish is white and flaky. Carefully remove the fish and set aside on a plate.

Add the bok choy leaves to the coconut broth and stir. Let the mixture come to a boil and boil for about 5 minutes. Then, reduce the heat to simmer. Continue to simmer until the stems of the bok choy are tender. Remove the ginger root pieces. Taste the broth and adjust the sweet/salt/heat/sour if desired. For a less spicy broth, you can remove the jalapeno slices rather than eat them so that they just flavor the broth (similar to the ginger). Gently return the fish to the pan - just for a minute so it is hot.

Serve the fish and bok choy with the rice and lots of broth. Top with the reserved lime zest and scallion greens. Serve with extra lime wedges, if desired. To make your rice like the photo below, use a small bowl or measuring cup. Simply wet the container so the rice won't stick and then fill it with rice. Gently press down on the rice once it is full and then turn it upside down onto your serving dish. 

What was I cooking one year ago?: pumpkin-corn muffins and red cabbage and green apple slaw