Sparkling Cider-Poached Fish

Directions

1. 1
   Preheat the oven to 500F.
2. 2
   Smear the bottom of an ovenproof skillet with the butter; sprinkle the shallot and mushrooms around the sides of the skillet.
3. 3
   Season the fish with salt and pepper to taste and lay it in the center of the skillet.
4. 4
   Pour the cider around the fish.
5. 5
   Bring to a boil on top of the stove, then transfer to the oven.
6. 6
   Bake for about 8 minutes; its highly unlikely the fish will need more time than this unless it is very thick (or you like it very well done).
7. 7
   Baste with the pan juices and serve.
8. 8
   The lone improvement you can make to the main recipe is to add more butter.
9. 9
   Although I stopped at 4 tablespoons1/2 stickI realized that there really was almost no upper limit as far as my taste buds were concerned.
10. 10
    But the dish is awfully nice when made on the lean side, too.
11. 11
    Substitute any aromatic vegetable, or a combination, for the shallot: onion, leek, carrot (cut very small), celery, fennel, scallion.
12. 12
    Use a mixture of mushrooms, or fresh mushrooms combined with reconstituted dried mushrooms.
13. 13
    A little of the strained mushroom-soaking liquid added to the poaching liquid is nice, too.
14. 14
    A teaspoon of thyme leaves added to the poaching liquid is great; also good is parsley (a small handful of stalks), chervil (a small bunch), or dill (a few stalks).
15. 15
    Garnish with chopped fresh leaves of the same herb.
16. 16
    Some seeds are good in the poaching liquid, tootry caraway, coriander, or fennel.