Heavenly Halibut, a broiled halibut fillet recipe. (2024)

FAQs

How do you cook halibut and keep it moist? ›

Cooking your fish en papillote is a classic French method of steaming your meal in a pouch made of parchment paper or aluminum foil. The pouch is placed in the oven to bake or placed on a grill in order to cook its contents. It's easy to cook flaky, tender, and moist Pacific halibut when cooking en papillote.

Bake until the fish is just opaque in the center (an instant-read thermometer should read 135 to 140 degrees F), 10 to 20 minutes.

Some recipes for sous vide halibut recommend soaking the fish in a saltwater brine before cooking, in order to season it more deeply and to give it a denser, firmer texture.

Brush both sides of the halibut with the oil and let marinate for 15 minutes. Heat the grill to high. Season the halibut with salt and pepper, to taste, on both sides and grill until slightly charred and just cooked through, about 5 minutes per side. Remove from the grill to a platter.

Cooking to 135°F helps ensure that it hits that “just right” doneness without veering into the realm of overcooked. Also, make sure you use a reliable thermometer to check the temperature of your fish.

The recommended cooking temperature for halibut by the USDA is 375°F (190°C) for approximately 10-15 minutes per inch of thickness. Internal temperature should reach 145°F (63°C) for safe consumption, ensuring the fish is cooked thoroughly while remaining tender and moist.

Halibut is notoriously difficult to grill due to its low fat content. The brining process helps solve that problem, but there are a few more tricks as well. First, don't overcook it. Halibut is best when cooked to a low internal temperature.

Remove the scales from fish if a recipe calls for it, but leave your fish unrinsed to prevent your kitchen from becoming a breeding ground for germs.

We've found an easy way to eliminate the smell: Soak the fish or the shellfish meat in milk for 20 minutes and then drain and pat dry. The casein in milk binds to the TMA, and when drained away, it takes the culprit that causes fishy odor with it. The result is seafood that's sweet smelling and clean-flavored.

What is the white stuff coming out of halibut? ›

Contrary to popular belief, it is not fat, rather a simple protein that is most evident on salmon and some white fish like halibut. It's called albumin and regardless of how your fish is prepared – broiled, baked or barbecued, this harmless, curd-like substance can appear at any time.

The proteins in the fish also begin to tighten, which can make the fish tough and rubbery. In addition, overcooked fish can have a severe lack of flavor, as the heat causes the natural oils in the fish to evaporate.

Halibut is so easy to overcook that we recommend monitoring the fillet with a Thermapen while it cooks.

Halibut has a reputation for drying-out quickly if it's cooked for too long, so most traditional methods require the fish to be briefly fried, grilled or roasted. If you want to embrace a slower method then turn to techniques like smoking or curing.

The recommended cooking temperature for halibut by the USDA is 375°F (190°C) for approximately 10-15 minutes per inch of thickness. Internal temperature should reach 145°F (63°C) for safe consumption, ensuring the fish is cooked thoroughly while remaining tender and moist.

The fillets may ooze water and are mushy when cooked. While the cause of the condition is unknown, it is thought to be the result of nutritional deficiencies. Microscopically, there is muscle fiber atrophy and sometimes infiltration by inflammatory cells, fibrosis, and calcification of atrophied fibers.

excessive lactic acid from overexertion of fish fighting capture for several hours on longline fishing gear. Flaccid, glistening, translucent flesh typical of mushy halibut syndrome.