Slow-Cooked Halibut with Garlic Cream and Fennel

Lovely taste overall and the instructions lead to a perfectly cooked halibut. But the amount of salt the recipe calls for is insane. The salt totally overwhelmed the flavor of the fish. I'd take it down maybe to a third of the salt level recommended. Also, does it really required 4 cups of cream? Maybe 80% of the cream was left over and wasted. If I make this dish again, I plan to experiment with using much less cream and maybe a smaller pan so that the halibut is still pretty well immersed in the cream. Lastly, I'd say the leeks were a little undercooked. Next time, I might think about sticking the leeks in the broiler at the very beginning or very end to give them a little char and more softness. I also might cut them thinner than 1/2".

• Matt G

• Queens, NY

• 3/15/2024

Delicious! Used less cream as others have noted, filled in a little with regular milk. It was plenty rich enough. The lemon-fennel oil makes the dish. Seven with chewy sourdough bread for capturing the delectable sauce.

• Sue P

• Monterey, CA

• 9/17/2023

I would give this 5 stars for flavor but the times and temps needed so much tweaking that it rated 3 stars! The fennel easily took 30 minutes to become tender and the halibut took 15-20 minutes in a 300 degree oven but the time is dependent on the thickness of the filets so I brought it to an internal temp of 140 and it was perfect. I subbed two cans of full-fat coconut milk for the cream because of dairy intolerance and it worked beautifully. A tablespoon of salt seemed REALLY excessive so I salted to taste and probably used half that amount. All in all, delicious, different and elegant.

• hcc

• 5/26/2022

This is a remarkably simple dish! I agree with other reviews that the cooking times are off. I have made this several times (5+) and slowly cook the fennel on the stovetop for 30 minutes on low, then the halibut in the oven for 30 minutes at 300 degrees F. This is one of the most wonderful ways to cook halibut. Eating this is so enjoyable. Took the advice of another review and served this will steamed spinach. This takes care of the excess flavourful garlic cream on your plate. I pour the extra cream on top of the steamed spinach when plating. The first few times I made the dish I did not realize that fennel oil is not an ingredient. It's the olive oil with fennel fronds and lemon. Funny how I could read a recipe multiples times and not get it! lol. Either way, I highly recommend this dish when you have a beautiful fresh slab of halibut!

• missstark

• Port Moody BC

• 3/23/2022

Wow, I only made this to get rid of a fennel bulb. So unexpectedly good!

• tinaoshea

• Alameda, CA

• 6/28/2021

We are big seafood lovers and discriminating halibut cookers and we LOVED this. I made it for 2, so used 12 oz. of halibut and about a cup of coconut creme. I browned the halibut first, then set it aside while I cooked the (chopped) fennel and garlic in the creme. I then finished cooking the halibut for about 9 minutes. I couldn't quite figure out the lemon "core" so I squeezed and zested half a lemon, added the chopped fennel fronds and olive oil.Yum!

• sxfoster9021

• Seattle

• 4/6/2021

This recipe was extraordinary, and unlike anything I've made before. Simple to prepare, but with amazing results. I also increased the oven temperature and cooking time. My only regret is that I didn't plan ahead and chill a great wine to accompany this dish.

• 1936farm

• Elmwood, NE

• 9/14/2020

So glad to find this recipe for the beautiful halibut I bought today. Wow, so flavorful and delicious. I used half the (heavy) cream and threw in a splash of half and half for more volume. My garlic cloves were large so I didn't add additional. I roasted sliced potatoes until they were brown but not cooked through and added them with the fish. I found both the cooking times (and the temps) for the fennel and the fish spot on, but if you have a fat piece of halibut you need to make sure the entire thing is submerged in the garlic cream.

• loomco1

• Napa, CA

• 8/30/2020

This was excellent. Used cod, halved the cream based on other reviews, and doubled garlic (crushed, not sliced). Didn't understand how to prepare the lemon, but I think juice would work just fine. Served with buttered basmati, which was great for the extra sauce.

• leslier88

• 4/26/2020

This is so simple and delicious. Halibut is an expensive fish and can easily turn out on the dry side. This recipe ensures a moist, super-flavourful dish. A real crowd pleaser. I was glad I had read the reviews. I made enough for six, and three cups of cream were plenty (as opposed to six, if I had followed the recipe). Topping the dish with the fennel greenery made it pretty. I mixed in some home-preserved Moroccan lemons instead of fresh lemon. Steamed, thinly sliced potatoes soaked up some of the sauce. Yum! Asparagus added to the colour. The leftovers will be chopped into a sandwich filling that makes me drool just thinking about it. Definitely a dish I will make again.

• cjwellner

• Kelowna, BC

• 3/4/2020

My whole family loved this dish. I used cod and served it with wilted spinach to make further use of the delicious sauce. I would mince the lemon in a food processor rather than chopping it.

• deb_winkler

• Chicago

• 1/17/2020

Absolutely delicious recipe. Like other reviewers, I cooked the fennel for 20 minutes on the stove then added the fish, and cooked for 20 minutes in a 350 degree oven. I used 2 cups total of cream (which I did 50% full cream and 50% half'n'half). I also cooked small yukon gold potatoes on the side, halved them, and added those to the bowl at serving time....they were a nice addition. Very pretty dish, and I will definitely make this again for guests!

• wbouck

• San Francisco

• 5/3/2019

This was so easy and delicious. Deemed "best halibut I've ever had" by my seafood-loving/critiquing husband. Thanks to the other reviews, I was able to adjust the recipe which resulted in success on the first attempt. I misread the instructions about the fennel and ended up slicing the bulbs about 1/2" thick (which was less artistic but also allowed them to cook faster- in the listed amount of time). I also upped the number of garlic cloves to 10-12 (but I always add more than the specified amount of garlic). It was truly divine how they transformed and infused the cream with a delicate, but full garlic flavor! I also reduced the amount of cream as recommended by other reviewers. I didn't measure, but I had a partial carton of heavy whipping cream which was probably about a cup. I added another 1/2-3/4 cup of half and half. I didn't feel the fish needed to be submerged to be cooked well. I simply nestled it amongst the fennel, spooned the cream over it, and placed it in the oven for 15-20 min. My oven was set at 375 because I had started roasting cauliflower florets about 25 min beforehand, then reduced it to 350 and added the fish. I served this in a shallow bowl with the roasted cauliflower flanking it (which was a perfect healthy accompaniment to partner with this decadent sauce). I would definitely NOT skip the fennel oil as the dish truly needs the acid for balance. Plus, it elevates the plating! I would also think you could simply sous vide the fish and skip the oven step. This will definitely be my go-to halibut recipe!

• blaze6849

• Zillah, WA

• 2/1/2019

The timing is way oof in this recipe. The fennel couldn’t become tender after only 15 minutes especially since the cream wasn’t supposed to boil. No way the fish cooked in 18 or 22 minutes at 250. Like someone else said I had to turn up the oven to 350 and even this took time. The cream broth was very good however. Not sure about the fennel oil. It didn’t really add anything. Pretty good overall but I don’t think I’ll make it again. If I do I’ll steam the fennel beforehand.

• appolo

• Arlington VA

• 10/28/2018

Using some of the recommendations given before, I made this with some extra garlic and only 2 cups of cream. It was great, but very very pale, so I also served some bulgar pilaf and a green salad. I’ve saved the extra cream to make a sweet potato gratin tomorrow.

• bheydeman

• Chicago, IL

• 10/25/2018