Baked arctic char
Baked, Fish & Seafood

Arctic Char with Horseradish Sauce (‘Saibling mit Meerrettichsoße’)

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I love arctic char. It’s a small fish with a bold flavor. It’s no random coincidence that the orange color of its flesh reminds of salmon. Just like trout, arctic char is a member of the salmonid family.

Arctic char is the perfect fish to serve with horseradish sauce. Its strong flavor can hold up to the pungency of the horseradish sauce. Horseradish sauce is a common sauce in Southern German and Austrian cuisine. Besides fish, it is also popular with boiled beef.

Horseradish has a different kind of pungency than chile peppers. It’s similar to mustard, just a lot sharper. You will only need a little bit of horseradish to season the sauce.

It’s very simple to prepare the horseradish sauce. It’s a mixture of milk and fish stock that is thickened with a roux. The horseradish gets mixed in just before serving. It’s up to your taste how much you want to add. You can use fresh or prepared horseradish. They will both yield similar results.

How to prepare the arctic char

Arctic char before baking

The arctic char gets baked in the oven until cooked through. That way you won’t get a crispy skin but it will, therefore, be very succulent. To enhance the flavor of the fish I like to stuff the cavity with ginger, savory, and lemon.

Fresh savory might be hard to source for you but it is a lovely herb. You can replace it with thyme or just omit it entirely. However, if you can get your hand on fresh savory, you can use it for all kinds of delicious dishes like braised green beans, lentil soup, and pork roast. It makes meals easier to digest and adds a fragrant bitter note to dishes. It’s a must with pulses and grains.

One fish is usually enough for two people although I know that a lot of people can eat the fish entirely by themselves. So, always adjust the serving size to your taste. This baked arctic char is best served with boiled jacket potatoes which are lovely to soak up the sauce.

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  1. Pingback: Pork Rib Soup ('Rippcheneintopf') - My German Table

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