Mediterranean Style Baked Halibut Recipe

by SoPo Seafood's Jacqueline Clark AKA The Briny Babe

We love a colorful weekday dinner that is refined yet simultaneously effortless to execute. Here, Greek-inspired flavors like eggplant, kalamata olives, cherry tomatoes, oregano, and lemon and pair beautifully with the Atlantic Halibut. All you have to do is layer the ingredients in a roasting dish and throw it in the oven. It comes out incredibly flavorful and couldn’t be easier!

Halibut is a mild, sweet tasting white fish with a thick, firm texture. Because the flavor is so gentle, halibut pairs well with bolder seasonings like this delicious Mediterranean-style dressing made with lemon, garlic, oregano, and Dijon mustard.

The Gulf of Maine halibut season runs from mid-May through mid-June. Historically, halibut was a mainstay of the Maine fishing industry along with cod. Part of the allure of the halibut was their massive size, second only to Bluefin tuna in the Gulf of Maine. The Atlantic Halibut has a large natural range, from Greenland in the north, all along the Canadian Maritimes, and into the Gulf of Maine. Due to warming ocean temperatures, Atlantic Halibut generally prefer deeper, colder waters, thus making the fishery season in Maine so short.

• Prep Time: 10 minutes
• Cook Time: 20 minutes
• Total Time: 30 minutes
• Servings: 2

Mediterranean Style Baked Halibut Recipe Video

Ingredients:

• For the Halibut:
o Two 6-8 oz halibut filets
o 2 petite eggplants, or 1 medium eggplant
o ¾ cup grape tomatoes, halved
o ¼ cup Kalamata olives, torn
o ½ lemon, thinly sliced
o Quinoa or couscous, to serve

• For the Mediterranean Dressing:
o ¼ cup extra virgin olive oil
o Juice of ½ lemon
o 2 cloves garlic, minced
o 1 TBSP fresh oregano leaves, loosely chopped
o ½ tsp Dijon mustard
o 1 tsp salt
o ½ tsp pepper

Wild Halibut Fillet Fresh with Ingredients

Steps

1. Prep the Oven: Preheat the oven to 375°F.

2. Prep the Vegetables: Cut the eggplant in half, and then quarter each half until you have bite-sized pieces. Halve your cherry tomatoes. You can buy Kalamata olives that have already been de-pitted; if you purchase whole Kalamata olives, ensure you remove the pits!

3. The Halibut: Pat the halibut filets dry with a piece of paper towel. Place the halibut filets in an oven-safe baking dish. Scatter the eggplant, tomatoes, olives, and lemons over and around the fish.

4. Make the Dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, oregano, and Dijon until well-combined. Pour the mixture over the fish, and the vegetables.

5. Bake you halibut: Sprinkle the top of the halibut and the vegetables with kosher salt and pepper. Transfer to the oven and bake until the halibut is cooked through, and flakes easily with a fork, 15 to 20 minutes. (This step will depend on the size and thickness of your halibut! We use an internal temperature to ensure our halibut reaches 145°F.

6. Plating: We love to pair our Mediterranean baked halibut with some quinoa, which adds a delicious nutty flavor to the sweetness of the halibut and the blistered cherry tomatoes. Garnish with lemon and a few sprigs of oregano for color, and serve!