This was a real adventure as it’s not something I’ve tried before and I wasn’t at all sure it would work from a taste point of view. However even though I’m not a huge fan of cod (I find it too bland and boring) I thought it worth trying. As usual this is based on, but doesn’t slavishly follow, a recipe online.

Baked Cod with Orange & Ginger

Serves: 2
Preparation: 10 minutes
Cooking: 25 minutes

Ingredients

• 2 good sized cod loins/steaks
• 3-4cm piece of ginger, peeled & grated
• 3-4tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• juice & zest of an orange
• 1-2tsp dried mixed herbs
• 1tsp cumin powder
• pinch of salt
• black pepper
• orange slices/wedges to garnish (optional)

What to do

1. Preheat the oven to 180°C (or a bit higher if not using a fan oven).
2. Pat the cod pieces dry and place in a baking dish, leaving some space between. Season with a very small pinch of salt.
3. Mix orange juice & zest, shredded ginger, olive oil, herbs, cumin and a few grinds of black pepper in a small bowl. Stir to combine.
4. Brush the cod generously on both sides with the orange mix.
5. Cover foil and bake in the oven for 15-20 minutes.
6. Then remove foil and bake for a further 5-10 minutes until the cod is cooked through and slightly crispy on top.
7. Serve, garnished with orange slices if desired (I didn’t).

I served it with garlic roast potatoes (I must write them up sometime as they’re one of our favourites, and dead easy) and a fennel slaw.

Conclusion

Well it worked and was edible, the cod was only just overcooked (it had an extra 5 minutes to try to get it crispy), and the combination of flavours worked well together. But it needs work and improvement …

The cod wasn’t really crispy, partly I suspect as it ended up with too much liquor in the baking dish. In part that was probably because I had used a large, very juicy, orange. I should have kept a couple of slices of orange for garnish as there would still have been plenty of juice.

The other thing was that for me the orange and ginger didn’t really come through to the extent I thought they should. Again that may have been down to too much liquor and the orange not adhering enough to the cod. Maybe try reducing the orange juice and using a bit less oil, so it’s stickier?

I do wonder if another time I will try coating the cod in breadcrumbs with orange zest, ginger and herbs and pan frying it. Maybe served with a small amount of sharp (not sweet) orange sauce. Something to try when the supermarket next have good cod on offer!

Nevertheless it was a worthwhile experiment and something different.