Composition: Grilled Swordfish on the Beach

File:Grilled_swordfish_tableau_farro_large.jpg The bold taste and ocean fragrance of swordfish shines best when grilled simply over wood fire, a traditional way to cook fresh fish worldwide. The flavors of this open-ocean game fish transport us to a warm beach with golden sand and lush vegetation represented by einkorn farro and colorful chards.

Composition elements

Grilled Swordfish with Thyme and Olive Oil
Wood-fire grilled swordfish steak brushed with olive oil and thyme

Wood-Fire Chards
Wood-fire Swiss chards tossed in spicy olive oil

Einkorn Farro
Heirloom einkorn wheat berries drizzled with olive oil

Lemon wedge
Generously sprinkled over everything

Staging, plating, substitution, and leftovers notes

Pairing

This composition calls for a robust and well-rounded red wine that can stand up to the wood fire flavors. We are looking for wines with some tannins, an overall balanced body, and little fruitiness. Excellent pairings include Malbec (or French Cahors), as well as Grenache.

What makes it special

Swordfish is a special treat that we can still enjoy today because of conservation efforts led by the United States in the 1990s when the swordfish population was very depleted. The swordfish story illustrates the importance of sustainable fishing if we want to continue eating tasty fish in the future. When eating swordfish, be careful to buy only sustainable swordfish.

Swordfish has been consumed by humans since ancient times and is found worldwide from the Mediterranean Sea, to the Atlantic, Indian, and Pacific oceans. With this composition, we honor the traditional cultures of people across space and time who have grilled fresh swordfish over wood fire.

We also showcase heirloom plant foods. Einkorn is a very old wheat varietal that has been cultivated for millenia in the Mediterranean region. Chards are leafy green vegetables related to beets that have been consumed for centuries. Both einkorn and chards had become very uncommon and have recently been revived because of their outstanding taste and nutrition.

This composition exemplifies the principle "less is more". A few ingredients of high quality, prepared simply, with the right recipe, can create unforgettable tastes and memories. We use less than 10 ingredients in total in this composition. We bring out the natural flavors of swordfish, chards, and einkorn with wood fire, salt, pepper, and thyme, and bind them together with olive oil and sprinkled lemon juice.