Nobu’s Black Cod with Miso

this is a very special dish that olympia and i have made on rare occasions. you definitely want to make this if you want to impress someone, as it takes up to 3 days to prepare and make! be very careful NOT to burn the cod in the broiler b/c it cooks fast but a little crust is ooooh so good!

Nobu-Style Miso (from Wolfgang Puck)
3/4 cup mirin
1/2 cup sake
2 cups white miso paste
1 cup sugar
4 black cod fillets, about 1/2 pound each
1 stalk hajikami

My friend Nobu Matsuhisa shared this signature recipe with me when he appeared on my Food Network TV show. The recipe is adapted from his beautiful “Nobu: The Cookbook” (Kodansha International, 2001). The hajikami garnish he calls for is a pickled ginger shoot, which you can find in Japanese markets; regular sliced pickled ginger may be substituted. You’ll find the sake, mirin, and white miso not only in Japanese markets but also in most well-stocked supermarkets. You can use sea bass fillets in place of the cod.

1. First, make the Nobu-Style Miso: In a medium saucepan over medium heat, combine the mirin and sake and boil for 20 seconds to evaporate the alcohol. Add the miso paste and stir with a wooden spoon until it dissolves completely. Add the sugar, raise the heat to high, and stir continuously until it has dissolved completely. Remove the pan from the heat and leave at room temperature until the mixture has cooled completely.

2. Pat the black cod fillets thoroughly dry with paper towels. Put them in a nonreactive dish or bowl and slather them with the Nobu-style miso, saving a few spoonfuls of the sauce in a small covered bowl in the refrigerator to use as a garnish. Cover tightly with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 2 to 3 days.

3. Preheat the oven to 400°F. Preheat a grill or broiler. Lightly wipe off any excess miso clinging to the fillets, but don’t rinse it off. Place the fish on the grill or under the broiler and cook just until its surface turns brown. Then transfer to a baking dish and cook in the oven until the fish is just opaque in its center, 10 to 15 minutes more.

4. Arrange the black cod fillets on individual plates and garnish with hajikami. Add a few extra drops of Nobu-style miso around each plate.