Kajiki with Guava Beurre Blanc--Farmer's Market Exotic Fruits

Poor little guavas! Although I bought several with the other exotic fruit I bought this month and they perfumed my kitchen so nicely, I just never managed to get them posted. Guavas are a popular fruit here in Hawaii and grow wild and are also commercially planted on some islands. They are most plentiful in late summer into fall and are high in Vitamin C.

I made a puree of the few I bought and used some of it in these bellinis but didn't know what to do with the rest of the puree.



When I stopped at the store they had some fresh, local kajiki (blue marlin) so I decided to pick some up. (Kajiki is also called A'u and is a firm-fleshed fish with a mild flavor and a light amber-colored flesh. It lends itself to being eaten as sushi, grilled, baked or smoked).


Since the container with the guava puree fell out of my fridge when I put the kajiki in, I thought I would try in in some kind of sauce for the fish. Wanting to play off the mild sweetness of the fish, I thought making a guava beurre blanc would be interesting.

Kajiki with Guava Beurre Blanc

2 (6 ounce) Kajiki fillets (or substitute another firm, white fish)

olive oil

salt and pepper

Rub filet's with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat a medium pan or skillet and lightly oil. Cook fish until cooked through, about 3-4 minutes per side. Set aside.

Guava Beurre Blanc

2 Tbsp shallots, finely minced
1/4 cup white wine
1/4 cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

2 Tbsp Guava puree
4 ounces unsalted butter, cut into pieces
Salt to taste

In a saucepan, combine shallots and wine. Reduce until thick and syrupy. Add the lemon juice reduce again, stir in guava puree and heat through. Remove pan from heat and add one chunk of butter, stirring with a whisk to blend. Slowly add all the pieces of butter one by one until well combined. If you need to you can return the sauce to the heat to incorporate all the butter but do it over very low heat, or the sauce will break. Strain the sauce through a fine mesh strainer and serve immediately over fish.

Yield: about 3/4 cup.

Results: Pretty good! My (first!) beurre blanc sauce turned out well and the guava had a nice fruity sweetness that wasn't cloying and went pretty well with the fish. I think I still prefer a more savory sauce for fish but this was interesting and a change. I served it with a simple green salad with olive oil, lemon juice salt and pepper and a Seeds of Change, Indian rice mix. The whole meal took about 12 minutes to prepare. I would make beurre blanc again, either guava or plain.