Grilled Vietnamese Marinated Halibut

I’ve had trouble writing this post. Not just because I have not cooked a lot in the last 2 weeks–I have not–but also it just seems somehow to really shut the door on my U2 adventure. I want that picture of Bono to be the first thing I see when I open my blog!

But alas, life goes on. I don’t really have a recipe for you so much as an entry into the annals of Laura’s Adventures Learning To Cook Seafood. Which is very exciting, because I would say this is the first solid A fish, not shellfish, that I have cooked by means other than frying. I should have known that my tried, true, favorite marinade would work on fish as well as chicken, pork or beef. As many of you know, this marinade is open to lots of subtle variations; I changed it up a little by using ginger in this one.

The one thing that did not translate so well was serving the fish with bun, i.e., rice vermicelli and salad with nuoc cham. I am not sure why, but it was not a homerun for me. So if you want to try this marinade, I recommend serving it as is or with nuoc cham for dipping, but with other side dishes. Maybe some sticky rice and simple steamed broccoli, for example.

For the fish: I used thick cut halibut steaks, but according to a lot of the SE Asian cookbooks I have salmon would work as well.

Vietnamese Ginger Soy Marinade

1 chopped shallot
5 chopped garlic cloves
2 T chopped ginger
2 T fish sauce
1 T sugar
1 T superior dark soy sauce
2 T vegetable oil

Mix all of the ingredients together, whisking well to dissolve the sugar. Cover the fish with the marinade and place in air tight container or ziplock bag. Leave for at least 20 minutes or up to 8 hours in the fridge. Remove and grill to desired doneness.