Wait. What? BIRCH syrup?!?
Yep. Kinda hard to find (though you can order it on Amazon), and, as our friend Barbara would say, “kinda spendy,” but totally worth it – if for no other reason than using it as part of a marinade for fish.
Or chicken. Chicken would probably work a treat with this, too.
Thanks, too, to our cousin Lois for giving me the Canadian cookbook that started me on
cod and birch syrup, and led me to a shop in Niagara-On-The-Lake where I plunked down $30+ Canadian for a 100 mL bottle.
INGREDIENTS
•2 cod fillets
•Milk
•3 tbsp birch syrup
•3/8 cup miso ginger dressing
First things first, arrange your cod fillets in a single layer in a deep dish.
Add milk (I use whole) to cover the fish, then cover the dish and stash in the fridge for at least one hour.
Why milk? I have been doing this forever, with cod, scallops, swordfish, shark; most any “white” fish. I think it takes away that fish case smell and taste from even fresh fish, and makes them taste sweeter.
Once your fish has sat in its milk bath for an hour or so, discard the milk (a little left in the marinade dish is fine).
Whisk the birch syrup together with the miso ginger dressing and pour over the cod to cover completely.
Cover the dish and stash back in the fridge for at least one hour more, though two or three hours is better.
When ready to cook, heat your air fryer to 400º and brush the basket with olive oil.
Remove the cod from the marinade (discard the marinade) and arrange on the basket.
Air fry the cod for ten minutes, turning over after five, until the fish is cooked through and nicely flaky.
http://buzzyfoods.com/2020/04/01/aioli-for-the-win/Delicious.
Don’t care to air fry? Follow your fave recipe for baking or grilling cod, I think you will be pleased. My fish monger has a low opinion of broiling fish, but, if you must…
I paired our cod with scallion pancakes from Trader Joe’s frozen cases, freshly chopped scallions, and a nice drizzle of Aioli.
Note: we get our miso and ginger dressing from Stonewall Kitchen, but feel free to make your own, or try another Asian-inspired dressing.