Almond Crusted Halibut with Coconut Lemon Butter Sauce
Almond Crusted Halibut
One of my favorite dishes to cook is almond crusted halibut. Imaging my delight walking through the grocery store and happening upon coconut toasted almonds. They provided inspiration for this crunchy, creamy coconut almond crusted halibut dish with a buttery, lemon and hint of coconut sauce. And believe it or not…It’s really easy to make.
Freezer Full of Fish
We have 3 freezers plus the one attached to the fridge. I know, a lot; but that’s how we roll in Alaska. One contains wild game and meats, the other random frozen stuff, and finally-a freezer full of fish. Creativity is the name of the game to avoid fish burn out as we empty out the freezer for next summer.
When I saw the flavored almonds, I knew I wanted to create an almond crusted halibut recipe to use them and pair it with a sauce with subtle coconut flavor. So Jeff and I spent a Sunday afternoon playing around with the flavors and texture. (Of note, this recipe tastes good with just plain almonds as well, but if you can find the coconut almonds try it. And use them quickly, otherwise they are delicious to snack on.)
First Things First When Crusting Fish
Make sure that first, the fish is properly thawed or use fresh halibut. Next, rinse it off and pat it dry with paper towels. This removes the excess juices and allows the pre-dredge liquid to soak in a bit more which in turn holds the crust better. For this recipe, we used coconut milk as the dredging liquid. Many of you may be thinking ‘too sweet’, but really, not so much. It’s not like drinking coconut egg-nog or something; trust me, it’s subtle.
Secondly, I wanted to crust, not just dust the whole fillet, so we added in some panko for a light, flakey component. Finally (and I say it on every fish recipe I post because it affects the final product the most): DON’T OVERCOOK THE FISH! Remember, as meat rests, it continues to cook. Dry, overcooked halibut? No amount of sauce will fix it!
Coconut Lemon Butter Sauce
This sauce is a total throw back to flavors I enjoy from Hawaii and Mexico. One of my favorite dishes ever is an almond crusted halibut with lemon butter sauce I had in Hawaii and another was a salmon dish with cilantro I had in Mexico. So, I figured why not put it all together with some coconut milk to top this dish. And is worked!
While I haven’t tried it on anything but this dish, I think it would work well with other fish and chicken dishes! One final note, you can obviously choose to make this dish with a lighter dusting of the ‘crust’. Me? I made sure sure we got a little bit of crunch in every bite. Delicious!
Almond Crusted Halibut with Coconut Lemon Butter Sauce
Ingredients
For the Almond Crusted Halibut:
- 4-5 to 8 oz. Halibut Fillets fresh or frozen
- 1-6 oz. can Coconut Toasted Almonds plain if not available
- 1/2-12 to 13 oz can Coconut Milk
- 1 c. Panko Crumbs
- Salt and Pepper
For the Sauce:
- 1/2-12 to 13 oz can Coconut Milk
- 1/2 c. Whipping Cream
- 1/2 c. Chicken Broth
- 1 tsp. minced shallots or onion if none available
- 1/4 tsp. minced Garlic.
- 1/4 c. chopped Cilantro
- 1/4 tsp. Salt
- Pepper to taste
- 4 tablespoons Butter
- Juice of 1/2-1 Lemon or ~ 1-2 Tbsp. Lemon Juice
Instructions
For the Halibut:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Rinse halibut filets under faucet, and pat dry with paper towel.
- Pulse together almonds and panko crumbs.
- Salt and pepper halibut filets, then dip into 1/2 can coconut milk. (You can allow it to sit in coconut milk while prepping crust.)
- Then dredge in almond mixture, crust or dust to your desired coating.
- Place in buttered 9x13 inch baking dish, and bake for ~ 10-13 minutes. (Remember, it will continue to cook after removing.)
For the Sauce:
- Combine the remaining half can coconut milk, cream, and chicken broth and heat to low boil, turn down temperature.
- Add shallots, garlic, cilantro, salt, and pepper and allow to simmer 10-15 minutes, stirring frequently.
- Melt butter, and add butter and lemon juice to sauce.
- Plate almond crusted halibut and top with desired amount of sauce. Enjoy!
Notes
- Add amount of lemon to sauce for your taste.
- If desired, add a dash of old bay seasoning to sauce.
- If only crusting top of filet, baste sides with melted butter half way through cooking.
- For best success, try to use halibut filets of ~ equal thickness.
Hi Janet,
These look really good. I wouldn’t have thought dipping fish in coconut milk. I’ll try this recipe once I’m done with whole30.
-Janice
Thanks! I hope you enjoy it, the coconut flavor just gives it a little punch and sweetness:)