- [Announcer] This is a production of PBS Charlotte.

- [Announcer 2] The following episode of "Charlotte Cooks" is brought to you by Central Piedmont Community College and viewers like you.

Thank you.

- Coming up on this edition of "Charlotte Cooks", we're pan searing some halibut, and making a fresh mango salsa.

(upbeat music) Welcome to this edition of "Charlotte Cooks".

I'm Chef Pamela Roberts, and joining me in the kitchen today is Chef Keisha Brynn.

- Hi.

Hi, everybody.

- How are you today?

- I'm doing great.

- Keisha was a student here a long time ago, but now she's ventured out into the world.

And you have a personal chef business?

- Yes, ma'am.

I have a personal chef business, and it's called "Chef Keisha Brynn Culinary Chef Services".

- Oh, that's fantastic.

I'm so glad that you're here with us because we have a wonderful recipe to share with our viewers.

What are we making today, Keisha?

- [Keisha] We're making the perfect rice pilaf today, along with a seared halibut and a mango salsa.

- That sounds delicious.

Now, don't be intimidated by cooking fish.

Keisha's gonna show you the easiest way of cooking it so it turns out foolproof.

We've got a couple of tricks to show you about cooking rice, and we also have a really nifty trick about peeling and dicing mangos, which I think you're all gonna really like.

- I'm really excited about showing them that.

- What do we need to make rice pilaf, Keisha?

- Okay, so to make the rice pilaf, we're gonna have some butter, about two tablespoons of butter, along with our long grain rice.

Then we're gonna need some chicken stock, or broth, whatever you'd like to call it, and we're gonna warm that up.

So I'll have Chef Pam warm that up for me now.

- [Pamela] Do you want it boiling?

- [Keisha] No, it just needs to be warm.

- [Pamela] Alright.

- I have my saucepan on.

I'm gonna add some butter to it.

- So you don't want this to boil; you just want this to get warm, correct?

- I just want it to get warm so when I add it to my butter and rice, the warmness of it is gonna push the starches out, so the rice doesn't stick together.

- Good point.

Good point.

- [Keisha] Oh, let's turn this down a little bit, Keisha.

- [Pamela] You got it?

There you go.

- I like to just go ahead and add my rice while it's melting.

- [Pamela] The whole point here is just to get the rice coated with the butter, with the fat, right?

- [Keisha] Oh, yes, ma'am.

- So you could use something other than butter.

You could use margarine.

You could use olive oil.

You could use duck fat.

- Oh, yeah.

- You could use bacon fat.

You could use just about any kind of fat that you wanted to in making your pilaf.

You have to remember that if you use other fats, though, they do contribute flavors, right?

- [Keisha] Oh, absolutely.

- [Pamela] So if you're doing the rice for a duck dish, use your duck fat.

- [Keisha] Use your duck, yeah.

That works amazing.

- But butter is never a bad choice.

(Pamela laughs) - [Keisha] Never.

Okay, so I'm just continuing, the butter's melting.

The rice may be toasting just slightly.

- You can smell the nuttiness of the rice.

- [Keisha] But you don't want it to get too brown.

- So what kind of rice are you using here?

Just a long grain rice?

- Just a long grain rice we're using here.

But, of course, if you make any other rice dishes, like a risotto, you're using different rice for that.

- Yeah, 'cause the risotto rice will have a lot of starch in it.

- Oh, yes.

- And you want that starch when you're doing your risotto.

But when you're doing something like this, where you want those grains to fall apart, we wanna use a long grain rice that has less starch in it so it does fall apart.

- Alright, so we're just about toasted up.

What I'm actually gonna do is just take this off the burner and I'm gonna add the warm... - Because this is warm now.

- Warm broth to it, and you'll see it kind of bubble in the pan.

(liquid sizzles) Alright, so we'll put the lid on and then into the oven we go.

- How hot's the oven?

- [Keisha] The oven's gonna be at 350 and we're gonna go about 20 to 25 minutes.

- Excellent.

Next, we have a delicious fresh mango salsa.

This is one of my favorite things.

I could eat this just by the spoonful.

- [Keisha] Me too.

- [Pamela] I love mango salsa.

- [Keisha] So fresh and light.

- It really is.

For mango salsa, what are you putting in your salsa?

- We're gonna do some mangos, of course.

Our red peppers.

We're gonna have jalapenos in them.

Then some red onions.

Of course, we're gonna have our limes that we're gonna put over top to kind of mix and muddle everything together.

- Now, if you didn't have mangos, what else could you use?

- You could use pretty much any fruit.

The best fruits, I'd say, would be maybe a pineapple and some peaches.

You also can use canned if you want to.

Whatever you have on hand.

- That's a good point, about using canned, 'cause, sometimes, people will think, "I can't really make this 'cause I don't have...

But I've got this canned pineapple."

'Cause most people have canned pineapple in their pantry somewhere.

- Absolutely.

- But there's no reason you can't make this same salsa using just different fruits.

Could you use a different onion?

- [Keisha] Definitely could use a different onion.

You can use just a regular yellow onion if you want to, just dependent upon the flavors you wanna add to that.

Also, you could go hotter with your peppers, and I'll show you later, actually, that you could go hotter with your peppers if you want to, and how to properly seed them.

- Let's show them the mango trick.

- Oh, we do have a mango trick for you.

- You wanna see the mango trick?

- So we're gonna grab our glass back here, 'cause this is gonna be important for that.

First off, we're gonna grab a nice mango and then we're just gonna cut the sides off.

- [Pamela] When you're cutting your mango, guys, you wanna look for the fat cheeks.

Your mangos will have, basically, a wide area and then a narrow area.

You wanna cut the fat cheeks off and leave the seed in the middle.

There's a big seed in the middle.

When you cut the cheeks off, there's a really easy way of getting rid of that skin and how we're gonna dice it.

- It's always so tricky on getting around this seed.

- It is tricky, 'cause you never know where it is.

You can't see it, and you can't tell, until your knife hits it, where the seed is.

You just move your knife around a little bit to find it, just like you've done.

- Just gonna set these to the side.

Here we go.

You're gonna take the side here, and you're literally gonna just press and this is gonna basically peel it for you.

- [Pamela] That's really a fun trick.

The glass will catch the mango flesh and all the juice, and the part on the outside is the skin.

If you have any flesh left on the mango skin, you can always just scrape it again and it'll all come off.

Then you can peel the big pieces of the fruit out, chop 'em up, and you still have all that juice in there.

You won't lose any of the juice doing this.

- [Keisha] Perfect.

Alright.

- Glass full of mango.

- How easy that was.

Then you can do all the sides like this.

- Lemme get these outta your way.

- [Keisha] Yes, ma'am.

Thank you.

Oops.

- It's alright.

It does that.

- It does that.

- I've done this before, and just having a glass of mango, I'll just go eat the mango.

I love mango.

Do you like mango?

- I do.

I love mangos.

- I love mango.

I used to have a mango tree in my house when I lived in Florida, and it was, oh my goodness.

I thought it was my dream come true, and then there's only so many mangos you can eat.

(Pamela laughs) - Alright, now to dicing these out.

I will tell you, the mangos can be super slick, so you have to be really careful, especially when you're with a sharp knife.

I'm just gonna give me some flat areas here and then we're gonna go across to make us some planks and then shift them around to dice.

You'll see how they're already sliding, but it's okay.

As long as they're in small pieces, they'll mix together fine with everything else.

- [Pamela] It's salsa; it doesn't have to be perfect.

- [Keisha] Oh, yes.

We'll do the same thing here, just 'cause we don't want them too thick.

- I was just gonna say, the reason you're cutting that large piece of flesh down is because it is a little bit on the thickish side, and so when you cut it, like she's done, you're gonna get more even dices and the pieces are gonna be nice and small.

- [Keisha] Those are pretty good.

- [Pamela] It's gonna be perfect salsa size.

- [Keisha] Oh, yeah.

I don't wanna have too big of chunks in there.

Alright.

So I have it all diced up.

Then it'll just go directly into our bowl.

We'll grab this bowl to use it.

Basically, you're gonna take all your ingredients that you already have diced up and just put 'em into a bowl.

So our mangos are all in.

Peppers, all in.

Isn't it starting to look beautiful already?

- [Pamela] Yes.

The colors are fantastic.

The colors are fantastic, and that's why you choose the red onions.

- Onions.

- That's why you choose a green.

I mean, you're looking at your vegetables, and you wanna get some things that are all different colors.

- [Keisha] Then your jalapeno.

But also, if you wanted to go a little bit hotter, you can use different type of peppers for that.

Next, it'll be cutting a lime.

The juice of one lime.

Basically, you're gonna have some seeds in there at some times.

I just do it, I'm at home, I just squeeze it right into my container and catch those seeds if I have to.

- Is this all the seasoning we need in the salsa?

- Actually, I add a little salt and pepper, but I do everything to taste.

So once I get this mixed in, I'll mix it together and then I'll taste.

Then, of course, you always need a little bit of salt and pepper in there.

But it's just to your liking.

Now, we're just gonna stir it all together, and you're seeing all our lovely colors.

I'm gonna have a taste.

I know I will need something, right off.

- Yeah, because we haven't added any salt or pepper yet.

- Yeah, actually, it is pretty good like this.

But... (Pamela laughs) We'll take it.

Gonna grab us some salt and pepper, and then, of course, taste again, 'cause you just want it to be perfect.

After you're done with that, take this and sit it in the refrigerator for at least 30 minutes.

Then we're gonna use this to top our fish.

- Can you do it overnight?

- Absolutely.

You're gonna have better flavors overnight, with it sitting.

- Very good.

Okay.

- Alright.

- How long would this last if you needed to let it sit?

Is it like five, six days?

Would it deteriorate badly at that point?

- It wouldn't deteriorate badly, but I would eat it within four to five days.

- [Pamela] Four to five days.

Alright.

So, Keisha, we're gonna cut some hot peppers now?

- Yes.

We're gonna cut hot peppers.

- Just tell 'em a little bit about some of the different hot peppers, and then we're gonna show them how to safely cut the hot peppers.

- [Keisha] Okay, so we have over here some habaneros, along with some Scotch bonnet.

Then we have our hot red peppers on this side.

We're going to put our gloves on.

We're gonna show you how to cut and seed them, and protect yourself from having any reaction to how hot these peppers can be.

This is how I cut mine.

Then I go down the middle, and as a cook, I use my hands a lot.

- [Pamela] We do.

We like to touch our food.

- [Keisha] Oh, yeah.

Two ways you can do this.

I've seen people completely carve it out, and then some people like to use their knife.

I like to use my hands, just 'cause I like to feel everything that I'm doing.

- [Pamela] Trash right down here for you, if you wanna get rid of those.

If you're putting your fingers in there like that, you definitely don't wanna do this bare-handed.

- Oh, no.

(both laugh) Definitely not.

- Keisha's laughing.

- Definitely not.

- Yeah, that would definitely put you in a world of hurt if you did that with your bare hands.

- Also, always wanna clean up all these seeds, because they carry a little flame with them, too.

- They do.

The seeds and the membranes.

Yep.

- Right.

So we're cleaning it all out.

- [Pamela] Sometimes, you know, peppers can fool you a little bit.

Sometimes they're really hot, and sometimes they're mildly hot, and you never really can tell, can you?

- Oh, no.

- It's just one of those surprises.

You're gonna assume that, you see a jalapeno, you're gonna assume this guy's got some level of heat to him.

You can even find red jalapenos.

Aren't these pretty?

- [Keisha] They are.

- [Pamela] These are really nice.

I like doing a combination.

But like we did here with the salsa, if you are using red peppers - these are not the jalapeno peppers; these are the sweet red peppers - you can actually choose a different color jalapeno to go in there.

Or if you only have green peppers, you can put green pepper in there and then you could use a red jalapeno.

But just choose a variety of colors to make your salsa just really, really, really vibrant.

- Okay.

So they're all, membranes are out.

Pretty much all of our seeds are out.

Just moving those guys out the way and just like we normally do, we're cutting into our sticks.

(knife slicing through pepper) Just being very careful here.

I have a lot of room for my fingers.

Then we're cutting into cubes, however bigger cubes you need.

Small dice will be great for this.

As I see, I'm getting sprayed a little bit.

(Pamela laughs) - And you will get sprayed.

The peppers are juicy.

- Alright, perfect.

- Just don't get it in your eyes, right?

- That's right.

Then same for this one.

You can do this with all the peppers, just knowing that the same seeds and the membrane is in the small ones as in the larger ones.

- [Pamela] Sometimes people say the smaller the pepper, the hotter the pepper.

- [Keisha] I have heard that.

- [Pamela] I don't know how true it is.

Peppers intimidate me.

I'm gonna tell you.

The hot pepper stuff, I just sort of sit back on those.

- Oh, me, too.

I stay away from those.

- Yeah.

I don't do a whole lot of heat.

I do some, just because the heat has some flavor to it that's really, really nice, especially like one slice of jalapeno - I mean, one slice of habanero is what I'll use in an entire recipe.

- [Keisha] Oh, wow.

- [Pamela] I mean, yeah, right.

It's that sensitive.

So, Keisha, we've got the rice in the oven.

- Yes, ma'am.

- We've got our salsa made, and our salsa's sitting there resting and all those flavors are jamming together.

- Yes.

- You showed us how to do some beautiful cuts on the jalapeno so we're not gonna hurt ourselves or our kids or our cats or our dogs.

Now, we are going to cook the star of the show.

Our halibut.

- [Keisha] Our halibut.

- [Pamela] So grab that halibut and show us what we're gonna do.

Now, a lot of times, when people go to cook something, they wanna season it all up and put all the flavors on the meat and then put it in the pan.

What are we going to do instead of doing that?

- Instead of doing that, we're just going to season it right before we put it in the pan.

Okay?

What we're using is halibut today.

To sear, I like to use a meaty fish, I say.

Something like a halibut, something like a cod, salmon.

Pretty much everybody likes to sear a salmon.

I wouldn't necessarily use a thin fish, just because when it's sears off, it's gonna cook really fast.

- Right.

- Something like a flounder, most of us will fry that.

- Right.

- But today, we'll show you how to do a perfect sear on a nice cut of halibut.

- When she's talking about these different, she's talking about thickness of fish.

So when you go to your grocery store and you're buying your fish, she's talking about searing a nice, big, thick piece of fish.

So if your fish is a little skinny, put that in the fryer.

- Oh, yeah.

Yeah.

And it tastes better fried.

- They're great fried.

Okay, so we got a pan that's good and hot.

- Oh, yes.

The first thing we'll do is add a little olive oil.

You can use avocado or whatever you would like to use.

But we're gonna use some avocado.

- [Pamela] We're just gonna use a little bit of that, just enough to coat the bottom.

- Oh, yeah, you'll probably see, I'll show you how the pan is starting to, 'cause it's already hot, you can see the oils.

- [Pamela] Just shimmer.

- [Keisha] Just shimmer across there.

What we're gonna do, we're gonna go ahead and season.

You can use different seasonings.

Usually, with my fish, I just use salt and pepper on my fish.

It just works best for me.

But, if you like, a lot of people like garlic and onion powder.

But I just wouldn't use any seasoning that's gonna be easy to burn.

- Mm-hmm.

Onion powder and garlic powder burn really quickly.

We're using kind of a high-ish heat here, 'cause you wanna get a crispy, crispy, crispy outside, and the only way to do that is with high heat.

You put it in a cold pan, you're not gonna get a good sear on it.

- Oh, no.

We're just gonna put a little salt and pepper on it right before we put it in.

We got our pan nice and hot, seasoned it with salt and pepper.

You wanna do it face down.

(fish sizzles) You're already hearing the sizzle.

- If you're not hearing that sizzle, folks, your pan is not hot enough.

You gotta get it hot.

- Sometimes, inside the pan, if it's not completely flat and even, you have to move around your oil just a little bit to make sure you have oil in between your actual surface of your fish and the bottom of your pan.

Alright.

They're gonna be on this side for about four minutes and one big tell when you go to turn it, it shouldn't stick.

It should build a crust already on that side of the fish.

- One of the other tricks, too, is if you're starting to flip this and it's sticking to the pan, it's trying to tell you it's not ready to go yet.

- [Keisha] Not ready.

- [Pamela] So just back off and let it sit there for a minute or two, and it will release itself from the bottom of the pan.

That's guaranteed if you will oil your pan first.

- Oh, yes.

(Pamela laughs) - It won't do it if you put it in a dry pan.

(fish sizzles) - Alright, now, we're gonna prepare our lemon.

That's gonna be our garnish for our dish.

While our fish is cooking, I basically cut the bottoms off, 'cause the lemon is gonna sit flat on the plate.

So I automatically just cut the bottoms off of that.

Then you have the bottoms off.

So when you set it down, it'll actually sit up.

I'm gonna go about halfway, 'cause this is gonna make two.

- Right.

- Of our lemon crowns.

Taking a small knife, basically, you're just gonna do nice... Let me a little closer up on here.

You're gonna do nice little peaks all the way around.

All the way around.

Nice little peaks.

How are those looking, Chef Pam?

- They look good.

I love watching fish cook, because you can see the done-ness creep up the side of the fish.

- [Keisha] Oh, yeah.

- You can see it looks great.

- We're just going all the way around, making little peaks, and going deep enough in so when you pull it apart, it'll actually pull apart and you won't have to tear the inside of the lemon.

I think we're almost there.

- [Pamela] All you're doing is a zigzag, right?

- [Keisha] Just a zigzag all the way around.

You can do as many as you you want, depending on how many crowns you want.

- So, basically, if you do your little zigzags closer together or further apart affects how it looks on the inside when you pull it apart.

- Alright, so we're there.

Alright.

Now, we're just gonna kind of twist and spin it off.

It looks like I didn't go quite far enough, but I think I'll be able to be able to get it, nice and... - [Pamela] There you go.

- Alright, so we have our two crowns ready for our plating.

I'm just gonna clean my hand off here.

Oh, our halibut looks like it's getting super close.

- It does.

- If I can see it already.

Just gonna move it around a little bit on this side for that one.

- All you're doing, when you're moving the pan around, is just moving that oil so it's evenly around the bottom of the pan, right?

- Absolutely.

Alright.

I think we may be close.

Oh, you see, as I get ready to go, it's not ready yet, 'cause it doesn't come up easily.

- [Pamela] Right.

You say, "Not yet."

- [Keisha] Not yet.

Don't be afraid that it's burning your fish.

It's just getting a great sear on this side.

You're able to visualize the inside of the fish cooking while you're looking at it.

Getting close.

Getting close.

(fish sizzles) - Do you have a rule of thumb as to how long it's gonna take per inch thickness of fish?

I mean, some people will say, "Oh, four to eight minutes per inch of thickness."

I think that has everything to do with how hot your pan is, if you're cooking it on a grill, if you're cooking it in an oven.

- [Keisha] Absolutely.

I think it just depends on where you're cooking it on and what type of range you're cooking it on.

Some ranges get hotter, way hotter than others.

- Your gas will get hotter than electric.

Your propane gas will be hotter than natural gas.

It's crazy how many different variables there are when you're cooking.

- [Keisha] Ooh, yes.

- [Pamela] Look at that beautiful golden brown crust.

- [Keisha] Move that guy over.

There we go.

- [Pamela] Oh, he's gorgeous.

- That one was ready.

Easily came up.

(fish sizzles) Almost there.

- [Pamela] That one's almost there.

- [Keisha] Yep.

Think we just have a couple... - [Pamela] It's the thicker pieces that are taking a little bit longer, and that's just natural.

I mean, it's naturally gonna take a little bit longer for those.

- I'm just gonna add just a little oil.

That's just to help us get in between the halibut again and the surface of the fish.

Just always be careful.

(fish sizzles) Alright.

Think we're getting really close.

- Mm-hmm.

- [Keisha] I'm just being very gentle.

- Now, you see, I want you all to notice this lovely golden brown.

It's not over, over, over, over, overcooked.

It's not black.

It's not anything but just ready.

You see how she's gently picking it up, and when it's ready to go, it's gonna release itself.

It's kind of like a little magic trick, isn't it?

- [Keisha] Oh, yeah.

- It's when you force it, that things come apart and things just don't do well.

That looks delicious, Keisha.

- [Keisha] Thank you.

I'm just still, sometimes you just still have to rotate the oil underneath.

- Yep.

- [Keisha] It's about ready.

- [Pamela] It could be your pan.

It could be your range.

It could be your floor.

It could be anything.

Oh.

Yay!

- [Keisha] Oh, perfect.

So we got 'em all over.

- [Pamela] Nice.

- Then another three to four minutes on this side, just depending on the thickness of your fish.

- [Pamela] You've got these flipped, and now we're talking about determining whether they're actually done or not, right?

- Yes, ma'am.

- So you could look at the side where the cuts are and see how opaque it's turning.

It's turning from its translucent thing that it had before.

Now it's turning nice and opaque, and you're being able to see that flesh actually change color.

- Oh, yes.

- So, Keisha, are we ready to plate?

- Yes, ma'am.

We are.

- We gotta get the rice out.

How's that fish?

That fish looks great.

- [Keisha] Oh, it looks amazing.

I think we're just almost there.

By the time we get our rice out, we're good to go.

- Alright.

I want the people at home to see what this looks like inside when we take this out.

Look.

- [Keisha] Yep.

- [Pamela] All nice and done.

The only thing you have to do with this now is take a spoon and just fluff it up so that it all falls apart.

See how perfectly cooked that is?

That is like the perfect rice pilaf.

If you get some of those crispies on the bottom, there's some people that fight over those crispies.

- I like the crispies on the bottom.

- Oh, man, me, too.

I always try to serve everybody else and save the crispies for me 'cause they're really good.

But look at that.

That's your perfect rice pilaf.

It's all nice and fluffy and cooked perfectly.

Now we're ready to plate this beautiful halibut dish.

We've got the gorgeous golden brown halibut.

- Came out perfect.

- We've got the perfect, and you promised perfect... - I did.

- We've got the perfect rice pilaf, and we've got our mango salsa.

What do you want first?

- I wanna go with the rice first.

- Rice first.

Here you go.

Careful, it's hot.

- Yes, ma'am.

- Okay, there you go.

- Alright.

We'll take a nice scoop of rice, sit it in the center of your plate.

- [Pamela] Plating is one of those things that people don't think a whole lot about, but plating is what makes the difference between simple food and simple food that looks fantastic.

- Then we'll take a nice piece of our halibut, place it right on here.

- [Pamela] Yes.

- Kind of smush it down just a little bit.

- So it stays on that salsa.

I mean, it stays on that rice.

- Alright.

Then, our mango salsa on top.

- [Pamela] Do you want a bigger spoon, or you're good?

- [Keisha] I think this is good.

Depends on how much you want.

It's okay if it trickles down.

It just gives the plate a little bit more coloring.

- Absolutely, it does.

Tuck one of your lemon crowns on there.

- Alright.

Then we've got a lemon crown, right here on the side.

Okay.

So this is a popcorn shoot.

You can use this for your garnish.

We can just place it right there to give it a little bit more color.

- The popcorn shoots are some of those micro greens that we can find, that, just all kinds of lovely things around.

But popcorns are something you find all over the place.

Do they taste like popcorn?

Mm, kind of, sort of.

They taste corn-ish, but, you know, they're gorgeous.

Here we have, while she's doing that, I'm gonna present it to you.

We have our pan-seared halibut, our fresh mango salsa, and the perfect rice pilaf.

If you follow this formula, you will always have perfect rice pilaf.

You cook your fish this way, you're gonna have beautiful golden brown crusted fish, and your fresh salsa.

Remember, you could substitute pineapple or peaches for the mango.

There's no limit as to what you can do with some varieties in this.

If you would like to grab these recipes, check out our website at pbscharlotte.org.

Or you can send me an email at Pamela.Roberts@cpcc.edu.

I will send you a link that has all of our show's recipes on our website so you could find them and you could have just a bunch of fun cooking whatever dishes you find.

We've got another dish to present to you.

Beautiful, Keisha.

- Thank you.

- Just oh so yummy and oh so delicious.

Grab these recipes, y'all, and be adventurous in trying your new food adventure, cooking fish and making fresh salsa.

- Yes.

- Thank you for being on the show.

- Thank you for having me.

I really appreciate it.

- [Pamela] It's been fun.

- It's been a lot of fun.

- Thank y'all for watching this episode of "Charlotte Cooks", and we'll catch you next time.

(upbeat music) - [Announcer] A production of PBS Charlotte.