Name: Pan Seared Northern Pike and Radish Greens Salad Recipe
Prep time: 15 min
Cook time: 10 min
Total time: 25 min
Ingredients: 1 pound boneless, skinless northern pike fillets; kosher salt; black pepper; 2 Tablespoons canola oil; 1 Tablespoon butter; 1/3 cup olive oil; 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar; 1 Tablespoon honey; 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard; 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt; 1/8 teaspoon black pepper; 1/8 teaspoon garlic powder; 1/8 teaspoon onion powder; zest from 1/2 lemon; 4 cups radish greens and arugula; 2 cups fresh herbs such as cilantro, chives, oregano, parsley, dill, mint, and basil

This Pan Seared Northern Pike and Radish Greens Salad Recipe makes a healthy and easy lunch or dinner you can whip up in less than 30 minutes.

I'm always trying to encourage hunters to use more of the animal they harvested. For instance, instead of just keeping the Canada goose breasts and disposing of everything else, you can transform the legs and thighs into succulent meat for a variety of recipes like Goose Fettuccini Alfredo or French Dip Sandwiches. The same is true for many of the things growing in our gardens this time of year.

This radish greens recipe is my attempt to get creative with the parts of vegetables that typically get thrown away, and to give you a new idea for making the most of seasonal ingredients.

It's also my goal to highlight how amazing a northern pike recipe can be if you clean the fish properly and turn the fillets into something you'll be proud to serve family members or special dinner guests.

Can You Eat Radish Greens?

Don’t toss those radish greens! I don’t know when everyone decided it was a good idea to stop eating radish and turnip greens, and carrot tops. But I’m here to tell you that you are wasting good nutritious food if you are. Radish greens are very good for you and enjoyed as mature leaves, microgreens, or radish sprouts.

This time of year, I’m using those tops of greens as a base layer for salads like this one, or I'm sautéing them with some olive oil and garlic to serve alongside a juicy venison steak.

Radish greens may not be a popular ingredient to save and add to your diet, but neither was the Chopped Goose Liver Recipe when I first published it. And now it's one of the best-loved waterfowl recipes on this website.

What Do Radish Greens Taste Like?

Radish greens are a peppery, leafy addition to any salad, but this salad makes them one of the focal points. You just need to rinse them really well with cold water, and they end up tasting like arugula. I actually mixed the radish greens and some fresh arugula with some fresh herbs from our garden and paired them with a light and tangy apple cider vinaigrette dressing.

Northern Pike and Arugula Radish Greens Salad Ingredients

In addition to how nice it looks, the beauty of this radish green and herb salad is that it can be as sweet or as pungent as you like depending on what herbs you choose. And you can serve it in a big heap as a fresh first course for a fancy dinner for guests, or the main dish for a simple lunch or dinner.

How to Make Apple Cider Vinaigrette

Apple cider vinegar is an acidic liquid that’s made using fermented apple cider. It's a good addition to your diet since fermentation produces a healthy dose of good bacteria and probiotics. It also offers a fruity and zesty flavor that makes it great for this salad dressing.

The apple cider vinaigrette couldn’t be any easier to make! Just mix together a few ingredients and you’ll have this salad dressing made in a matter of minutes. All you need is olive oil, apple cider vinegar, honey, lemon zest, Dijon mustard, garlic powder, onion powder, kosher salt, and black pepper.

How To Fillet A Northern Pike

Northern Pike fillets have a mild flavor that is absolutely delicious. But pike can be a very intimidating fish to clean because of all the infamous "Y" bones no one wants to choke on. This video from the North Dakota Game & Fish Department is a great tutorial for everyone to watch and learn how to remove the "Y" bones from Northern Pike so you can end up with a beautiful boneless fillet perfect to pan sear and put on top of this summer salad.

How To Cook Northern Pike

A blast of heat in a nonstick pan and a basting of golden butter does wonders for northern pike fillets. The cooking time is extremely short so you can have an easy fish dinner, served up on a plate of radish greens, then drizzled with the apple cider vinaigrette. It will remind you of something you ordered in a restaurant. But wait! Guess who made this 5-star dish? You!

My wife will attest that this simple meal is nothing short of splendid!

I opted to pass on any sort of coating and make this pan seared pike with no breading and no flour. Not only is it faster and easier to prepare without the breading, but it also makes this salad recipe a little lighter and leaves room for the apple cider vinaigrette drizzled on top to shine.

There are different methods of how to cook northern pike, but pan seared fillets are my favorite. The secret is to never flip the fish. This allows the northern pike fillets enough time to caramelize the proteins and sugars in the fish without overcooking it. To cook the top of the fillet you baste it with the mixture of hot oil and butter.

Get Your Fish Fillets Dry And Seasoned

Use paper towels to pat the fish fillets dry, then season with kosher salt, and let them sit for about 10 minutes to bring to room temperature before you let the fish hit the pan.

Northern Pike Fillets seasoned with kosher salt and black pepper

Use A Hot Pan

Start by getting your pan nice and hot over high heat for about 2 minutes. Because we are going to cook the fish over really high heat, I start with about 2 Tablespoons of canola oil with its high smoke point. Then I'll add butter at the very end.

Once you add the oil to the pan, carefully swirl it around to coat the pan, then add the northern pike fillets and press down on the fillets with a fish spatula for nonstick pans for about 30 seconds.

Tip the pan and use a large metal soup spoon to baste the fish. When you see the brown edges on the side of the fish, do NOT flip it like you would a pancake. HOLD! WAIT! HOLD! At this point, you just want to carefully shake the pan in a swirling motion. If the fish moves, you are all set and it is done. If it doesn't move, try to gently lift up underneath it with the fish spatula. But if it doesn't easily release, give it a little more time and it should release if you added the right amount of oil in the beginning.

Northern Pike and Radish Greens Salad Recipe

More Fish Recipes

If you’re looking for another delicious fish recipe from Wild Game & Fish, check out some of our favorites below:

Come Catch Some North Dakota Northern Pike

If you are headed our way to catch some fish in North Dakota, check out the North Dakota Game & Fish Department website.

Join Our Wild Game Cooking Community

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE?

If you make this Pan Seared Northern Pike and Radish Greens Salad Recipe, tag @wildgameandfish so I can share it on my Instagram stories.

Did you enjoy this Northern Pike Recipe? Be sure to leave a 5-star rating RIGHT HERE!

Pan Seared Northern Pike and Radish Greens Salad Recipe

This Pan Seared Northern Pike and Radish Greens Salad Recipe makes a healthy and easy lunch or dinner you can whip up in less than 30 minutes.

5 from 7 votes

Print Rate

Course: Main Course, Salad

Cuisine: American

Keyword: 30 minute meal, dinner, fish, northern pike, northern pike recipe, quick and easy, radish greens recipe, radish greens salad, radish greens salad recipe, salad

Prep Time: 15

Cook Time: 10

Total Time: 25

Servings: people

Author: Jeff Benda

Ingredients

Pan Seared Northern Pike

1 pound boneless, skinless northern pike fillets
kosher salt
black pepper
2 Tablespoons canola oil
1 Tablespoon butter

Apple Cider Vinaigrette

⅓ cup olive oil
¼ cup apple cider vinegar
1 Tablespoon honey
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
¼ teaspoon kosher salt
⅛ teaspoon black pepper
⅛ teaspoon garlic powder
⅛ teaspoon onion powder
zest from ½ lemon

Radish Greens Salad

4 cups radish greens and arugula
2 cups fresh herbs such as cilantro, chives, oregano, parsley, dill, mint, and basil

Instructions

Gather your ingredients.
Pat northern pike fillets dry with paper towels, cut into 3- to 4-inch-long pieces, and then sprinkle them with kosher salt. Let them sit out at room temperature for 10 minutes.
Meanwhile, add all of the apple cider vinaigrette ingredients to a small bowl, whisk together, and set aside.
Place a nonstick pan on your stovetop and get it hot over a high heat for about 2 minutes.
Add the oil to the pan, carefully swirl it around to coat the pan, then add the northern pike fillets and press down on the fillets with a fish spatula for nonstick pans for about 30 seconds.
Tip the pan and use a large metal soup spoon to baste the fish. When you see the brown edges on the side of the fish, do NOT flip it like you would a pancake. HOLD! HOLD! HOLD! At this point, you just want to carefully shake the pan in a swirling motion. If the fish moves, you are all set and it is done. If it doesn't move, try to gently lift up underneath it with the fish spatula. But if it doesn't easily release, give it a little more time and it should release.
Now add the butter and turn the heat off but keep the pan on the burner. Use the same large metal spoon to baste the butter over the fish until they turn opaque.
Add radish greens and arugula to the large bowl with 2 Tablespoons of the apple cider vinaigrette. You can toss the mixture together with tongs, but I often just use my hands.
Divide salad and the cooked fish among 4 large plates and serve remaining apple cider vinaigrette on the side for those who desire a little extra.

Comments

5 from 7 votes (4 ratings without comment)