Dashi Butter Poached Butter Fish Recipe

This dashi butter poached butter fish recipe combines delicate seafood, umami-rich Japanese ingredients, and luxurious butter-based cooking techniques to create an unforgettable dining experience. Featured on Gusto TV Studios Presents: Bring on the Karbs, host Josh Karbelnik transforms simple ingredients into an elegant restaurant-quality meal complete with seaweed butter glazed butter beans and a silky brown butter miso sauce.

The Inspiration

Butter has long been celebrated as one of the most versatile and transformative ingredients in cooking. In this episode of Bring on the Karbs, appropriately titled Everything’s Better with Butter, Josh Karbelnik explores how butter can elevate every component of a dish while allowing each ingredient’s natural flavor to shine.

Drawing inspiration from Japanese cuisine, this recipe utilizes dashi, miso, seaweed, and sake to create layers of umami that complement the rich butter fish. The technique of butter poaching gently cooks the fish in an emulsion of butter and dashi, producing an incredibly tender texture while preserving moisture and delicate flavor.

The seaweed butter beans add another dimension to the dish, incorporating nori and dulse to deliver subtle oceanic notes that reinforce the seafood theme. Finally, the brown butter miso sauce brings everything together with nutty richness, balanced sweetness, acidity, and deep savory complexity.

Like many recipes featured on Bring on the Karbs, this dish embraces creativity and experimentation. The result is a sophisticated meal that feels both comforting and refined, showcasing how butter can serve as the foundation for extraordinary flavor.

Ingredients

For the Butter Fish

2 filets butter fish
1 lb unsalted butter
1 cup dashi

For the Seaweed Butter Beans

5 grams nori
5 grams dulse
150 grams tempered unsalted butter tempered
1 cup butter beans

For the Brown Butter Miso Sauce

10 grams white miso
100 ml sake
2 tbsp white sugar
½ cup unsalted butter
3 tbsp lemon juice

Method

Make the Butter Fish

Bring dashi to a simmer.
Add in butter and stir until emulsified.
Place fish in butter and let it sit for about 5 minutes.
Remove and torch fish to finish.

Make the Seaweed Butter Beans

Pulse seaweed in spice grinder.
Add to unsalted butter.
Place in fridge until set.
Blanch butter beans in salted water until cooked.
Remove and add to pan.
Add seaweed butter and stir until emulsified.

Make the Brown Butter Miso Sauce

Place butter in a pan on medium heat until brown.
In another sauce pot add sake and sugar and flame sake.
Whisk in miso then brown butter.
Finish with lemon juice.

Serving Suggestions

This elegant butter fish recipe is ideal for special occasions, dinner parties, anniversaries, or elevated weekend dining. The rich flavors pair beautifully with lightly dressed greens, steamed seasonal vegetables, or delicate Japanese-inspired side dishes such as cucumber sunomono or pickled vegetables.

The buttery richness of the fish and sauce benefits from bright accompaniments that help balance the meal. When entertaining guests, consider serving the dish as the centerpiece of a multi-course seafood menu inspired by Japanese and modern North American cuisine

The dramatic presentation of the torch-finished fish and glossy brown butter miso sauce creates an impressive restaurant-style experience that feels both sophisticated and approachable.

Final Thoughts

This dashi butter poached butter fish recipe is a celebration of indulgence, technique, and umami-rich flavor. By combining the delicate texture of butter-poached fish with seaweed-infused butter beans and a luxurious brown butter miso sauce, the dish delivers remarkable depth and balance in every bite. Inspired by the butter-loving creativity showcased on Bring on the Karbs, this recipe demonstrates how a handful of thoughtfully chosen ingredients can be transformed into an extraordinary dining experience.

Find more recipes from Bring on the Karbs! here!