Potted Char

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •12-inch (30 cm) lidded nonreactive sauté pan or fish poacher
• •Parchment paper for a cartouche
• •1-quart (950 ml) straight-sided earthenware or stoneware crock
• •Two broad fish spatulas
• •Fish-bone tweezers
• •Instant-read thermometer
• •Fine-mesh sieve

Instructions

1. 1

   Clarify the butter

   If your butter is already clarified, melt it over the gentlest heat and continue. Otherwise, melt the unsalted butter slowly without stirring, skim away the white foam, and let the milk solids settle. Pour the clear golden fat through a fine sieve into a clean jug, leaving every milky speck behind. Measure 1½ cups (360 ml / 325 g). Cloudy butter still contains milk solids, which shorten the keeping quality; let it settle again and strain once more if needed.

2. 2

   Poach the char

   Spread the fine Mirepoix (No. 228) across the bottom of a lidded nonreactive pan just large enough to hold the fish. Season the cavities and surfaces of the char with half the salt, lay them over the Mirepoix, and pour in the white wine. Press a parchment cartouche directly over the fish, cover, and bring the liquor slowly to a bare tremble. Poach gently for 10 to 14 minutes, depending on thickness, until the flesh beside the backbone is opaque and reaches 145°F (63°C). Never let the wine boil. If it begins to roll, lift the pan from the heat until it settles, then continue more gently; split skin is harmless here because the fillets will be packed later.

3. 3

   Cool in the liquor

   Remove the covered pan from the heat and leave the char in its cooking liquor for 20 minutes. Set the pan in a shallow bath of ice water, keeping the water outside the pan, and cool it promptly. Refrigerate the fish in the liquor until completely cold, about 2 hours. This cooling is not idle waiting: the flesh firms without drying and becomes far easier to lift cleanly from the bones. Do not leave the fish cooling at room temperature for more than 1 hour.

4. 4

   Skin and bone

   Lift the cold char from the liquor with two broad spatulas and drain for 10 minutes, then pat the surfaces dry. Peel away the skin, lift off the upper fillets, remove the backbone and rib cage, and retrieve the lower fillets. Pass your fingertips slowly over every piece and pull out each pin bone with tweezers. Taste a cold flake and add only as much of the remaining salt as it needs. If a fillet breaks, pack the large flakes in overlapping layers; potting forgives the appearance, but it does not forgive a hidden bone.

5. 5

   Pack under butter

   Heat the oven to 300°F (150°C). Arrange the char snugly in a clean 1-quart (950 ml) earthenware or stoneware crock, keeping the fillets in broad layers rather than mashing them. Reserve at least ½ cup (120 ml / 110 g) clarified butter for the final seal, then pour enough of the remaining warm butter around and over the fish to cover it completely. Run a thin skewer around the inside edge and tap the crock gently to release trapped air. Set it on a baking sheet and warm uncovered for exactly 15 minutes, preserving the source method without recooking the fish harshly.

6. 6

   Chill and seal

   Let the crock cool on a rack for 30 to 45 minutes, then refrigerate it until the butter is firm. Cover and leave it cold overnight. The next day, melt the reserved clarified butter just until liquid and let it become barely warm, then pour it across the surface to form an unbroken layer ⅓ inch (8 mm) thick. If the cap cracks, sinks, or leaves even one piece of char exposed, ça se rattrape: melt a little more clarified butter and cover the entire surface again. Chill until solid, cover tightly, and keep at or below 40°F (4°C) for no more than 4 days from the day the fish was cooked. This is not safe for storage at room temperature.

7. 7

   Open and serve

   Take the crock from the refrigerator 15 minutes before serving so the butter loses its brittle chill without becoming oily. Break through the cap with a clean knife and spoon out broad flakes of char with a little of their butter, then serve them on crisp baguette toasts. Once the seal is opened, cover and refrigerate the remainder, use a clean utensil each time, and finish it within 24 hours. À table!

Chef Tips

• •Ask the fishmonger for two small whole Arctic char with bright skin, clear eyes, and a clean mineral smell. Have them gutted and scaled, but keep them whole for poaching; the bones protect the delicate flesh while it cooks.
• •Use a pan that fits the fish closely. A broad pan demands unnecessary wine and leaves the upper surface exposed, while a snug pan and parchment cartouche surround the char with gentle, aromatic heat.
• •We don't apologize for butter, but we clarify it properly. Ordinary melted butter carries water and milk solids into the crock; clarified butter gives the clean flavour and firm protective cap this preparation requires.
• •A dry Savoie white such as Apremont is a natural companion, though any clean, unoaked dry white will cook the fish well. Chill the remainder and pour it with the finished crock.
• •The butter seal slows contact with air; it does not sterilize the fish. Keep the crock refrigerated, date it when the char is cooked, and discard it if the seal has been broken during storage or the fish develops a sour smell.

Advance Preparation

• •Have the Mirepoix (No. 228) prepared before the fish enters the pan. The poaching and first butter covering can then be completed in one evening without leaving warm fish waiting on the counter.
• •This dish must be started at least 1 day before serving. The char cools in its liquor, warms beneath clarified butter, sets overnight, and receives its final ⅓-inch (8 mm) seal the next day.
• •Keep the finished, unopened crock refrigerated at or below 40°F (4°C) and serve within 4 days of cooking. Once opened, use the remaining char within 24 hours.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 230g)