It's a Wrap!

I'm returning to Daring Cooks after quite a hiatus. 2011 and 2012 were full of time-consuming diversions, some welcome, some not so much. A move after 30+ years in the same house, surgery, my daughter's wedding, the loss of my mother - life happens.

All is fine now and I'm looking forward to cooking adventures.  

Our lovely Monkey Queen of Don’t Make Me Call My Flying Monkeys, was our May Daring Cooks’ hostess and she challenged us to dive into the world of en Croute! We were encouraged to make Beef Wellington, Stuffed Mushroom en Croute and to bring our kids into the challenge by encouraging them to create their own en Croute recipes!

I decided to be a bit creative and go in my own direction for this challenge. It's halibut season in the Pacific Northwest and the halibut is outstanding. To take advantage of fresh fish, I decided to wrap filets in egg roll wrappers. I'm not sure egg roll wrappers are exactly a pastry, but I think the general goal of enclosing the food in a crust of some kind is met.

The ingredients assembled.

I sauteed some mushrooms, gathered some dill sprigs and seasoned the halibut lightly. Mushrooms first, then dill, then halibut.

Getting ready to seal the egg roll wrappers.

I used water to seal the wrappers. I lightly moistened each side of the bottom wrapper and then topped it off.

Sealing and folding the wrappers.

After the top wrapper was on, I folded the edges over to create a kind of envelope for the halibut. I then seared both sides of the wrapped halibut in a hot cast iron skillet with a little peanut oil. When each side was a golden brown, I put the halibut in the oven for about 5-7 minutes, until an instant read thermometer registered about 125 degrees.

The final product!

When done, the halibut was moist and beautifully flavored. To add some color to the plate, I served it with avocado and tomatoes - good complements to the mild-flavored halibut.

I think this process would also work as an appetizer-sized dish. Smaller cuts of halibut that would fit in one egg roll would be great with a dipping sauce. Still a quick process, with even shorter cooking times - maybe something to try.

Thanks for the challenge!