Moi is a delicious, delicate Hawaiian fish that was once reserved only for royalty. The Hawaiian red salt that seasons it, available in some specialty shops, gets its color from minerals in the shoreline salt beds where it's produced; kosher salt will do fine. The lomi-lomi sauce that accompanies the fish takes its name from the Hawaiian word for massage; in island cooking, it also usually refers to a cured raw dish of salmon. I imagine that, once upon a time, the seasonings were massaged into the fish, though you could also argue that the name comes from the way it soothes and satisfies people who eat it.

2-4 Servings

INGREDIENTS

Pan-Seared Moi:
2 tablespoons sliced green onions
2 pounds whole moi (threadfin), cleaned and scaled
2 tablespoons Hawaiian red salt (can substitute kosher salt)
1 tablespoon freshly ground white pepper
3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

Warm Lomi-Lomi Salsa:
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1 medium Maui onion, cut into small dice
2 ripe tomatoes, cut into small dice
1 cup whole shelled freshwater shrimp or any other type of small fresh shrimp
2 tablespoons minced garlic
1 cup sliced fiddlehead ferns or sliced slender young asparagus
1 tablespoon minced ginger
1/2 cup fish stock, vegetable stock, or clam juice
1/4 cup unsalted butter
2 lemons, juiced
3 green onions, thinly sliced
Salt
Freshly ground black pepper

Wilted Arugula:
2 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 pound baby arugula, cleaned
1 tablespoon minced garlic
Salt
Freshly ground pepper

PREPARATION

For the Pan-Seared Moi: With a knife, cut a deep slit lengthwise along the thickest part of the flesh on each side of the cleaned and scaled fish. Gently rub the green onions and then the salt and pepper all over the fish and into the slits. Heat a skillet large enough to hold the fish over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil, gently place the fish in the pan, reduce the heat to medium and cook the fish until its skin is deep golden brown and its flesh is opaque and flakes easily, about 15 minutes total, carefully turning the fish over 2 or 3 times.

As soon as the fish starts cooking, make the Lomi-Lomi Salsa: Heat a saucepan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and, as soon as it is hot, add the onions and tomato and sauté them just until the onions are soft and translucent. Add the shrimp, garlic, fiddlehead ferns, and ginger and continue
to sauté until the shrimp turn pink, the ferns deepen in color, and the garlic and ginger are fragrant. Add the stock, stirring and scraping to deglaze the pan deposits, and boil the liquid until it reduces by half. Reduce the heat to low, whisk in the butter until it melts, and stir in the lemon juice and green
onions. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

While the Lomi-Lomi Salsa liquid is reducing, prepare the Wilted Arugula: Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add the olive oil and arugula. Toss lightly, add the garlic, and sauté for 1 minute, just until the arugula has wilted and deepened in color. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

To serve, mound the arugula along the center of a serving platter large enough to hold the fish. Place the fish on top of the arugula. Spoon the sauce over and around the fish. Serve immediately.

(reprint with permission by Wolfgang Puck – www.wolfgangpuck.com)