Tea-Smoked Sablefish with Sweet Potato Mash & Spiced Pumpkin Seeds

Serves 4

A rich and moist fish, sablefish — also called black cod and butterfish — does well with the gentle smokiness from tea smoking, which you can do on the stove with a wok using this method adapted from Ming Tsai. Sablefish pinbones are hard to remove when it’s raw, so you may need to take them out after cooking.

Sablefish

3 tablespoons brown sugar

1 tablespoon loose black tea, plus 1⁄ 3 cup

2 teaspoons kosher salt, plus more to taste

1 ½ pounds sablefish 1⁄ 3 cup jasmine rice

1 tablespoon soy sauce

1 teaspoon lemon juice or red wine vinegar

1 teaspoon honey

Sweet potatoes and seeds

2 pounds orange-fleshed sweet potatoes

½ cup pumpkin seeds

Olive oil

½ teaspoon brown sugar

½ teaspoon five spice powder

Kosher salt

To make the sablefish: Combine the 3 tablespoons brown sugar, 1 tablespoon tea and 2 teaspoons salt in a small bowl. Place the fish in a shallow container and cover with the cure, layering it more on thicker parts of the fillet. Drape plastic wrap on the surface of the fish and cover tightly, then let cure 8 hours to overnight. Rinse the fish and pat dry. Combine 1⁄ 3 cup tea and the rice in the bottom of a foil-lined wok. Place the fish on a greased rack that will fit into the wok or smoker. (If you don't have a rack, you can cut a disposable pie pan to fit inside the wok then puncture it with a needle or wine opener to make holes for the smoke to come through.)

Put the heat to high to get the rice and tea mixture smoking. Place the fish on the rack over the smoking mixture then cover the wok and reduce heat to low.

After 30 minutes, check for doneness; the fish should be fairly firm when pressed. Smoke more, if necessary. If the fish is very thick and taking forever to cook, you can transfer it to a baking sheet and finish it in a 325-degree oven.

Combine the soy sauce, lemon juice and honey in a small bowl to glaze the finished fish. Set aside.

To make the sweet potatoes and seeds: Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line 2 rimmed baking sheets with aluminum foil.

Pierce the sweet potatoes with a fork and place on a baking sheet and roast until very tender when pierced with a knife, about 45 minutes.

Meanwhile, combine the pumpkin seeds with 2 teaspoons olive oil,

the remaining ½ teaspoon brown sugar, the five-spice powder and

¼ teaspoon kosher salt in a medium bowl. Spread out on the second baking sheet and bake until toasted, 10-12 minutes.

Peel the sweet potatoes and mash, then season with salt and pepper to taste.

To finish: Brush the soy-lemon mixture lightly over the fish, then serve the fish on top of the sweet potatoes, sprinkled with the seeds.