Grilled Porgy

I bought some porgy at the union square market and grilled it up last week. It's cheap, easy, and very tasty. It was so fresh and the olive oil/lemon/herb mix is a perfect accompaniment. 

Ingredients:

1 small porgy, less than a pound

1 small spring onion, cut into quarters (using part of the green shoots)

olive oil

lemon juice

fresh oregano, chopped

fresh parsley, chopped

salt and pepper

juice of 1 lemon

1/4 cup olive oil

Mustard and Creme Fraiche-Roasted Fish

This is a quick, easy, and tasty Ina Garten recipe. The whole thing takes about 20 minutes. The sauce is so flavorful.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 filets of fish (I used striped bass - wonder why?)

1/2 cup creme fraiche 

1.5 tbsp Dijon mustard

1/2 tbsp grainy mustard

1 small shallot, finely chopped

1 tsp capers, drained

Salt and pepper

Directions:

Preheat the oven to 425. Mix the creme fraiche, mustards, shallot, and capers and season with salt and pepper. 

Striped Bass with Lemon Olive Sauce

My wonderful friend Chelsea had me over for dinner on Wednesday. I supplied the bass and she whipped up this tasty recipe. The firm, steaky bass holds up perfectly to the briny and citrusy sauce. So good! Thanks, Chels! (She served it with cabbage slaw and sweet potato latkes which I forgot to snap.)

Serves 4

Ingredients:

4 striped bass filets (or any firm white fish)

Olive oil 

2 lemons, peeled and thinly sliced, segments halved

Juice of 2 lemons

2 tbsp fresh oregano

2 tbsp capers

3/4 cup pitted kalamata olives, roughly chopped

Grilled Dill-Marinated Bass

Searching my brain for another bass week recipe, I was trolling through the grocery store while they were unloading dill. It smelled so fresh and nice that I plucked some up, along with shallots, lemon, olive oil, and parsley. I marinated the fish in a mix of the herbs, shallot, olive oil, and lemon zest with plenty of salt and grilled it over charcoal. It was fresh and tasty and the charcoal grill gave it a great crust. We had it with grilled asparagus.

Ingredients:
a handful of fresh dill, chopped
a small handful of fresh parsley, chopped
1 small shallot, diced
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp kosher salt
zest of 1/2 a lemon
1 large filet of striped bass

Striped Bass en Papillote

For my first bass recipe, I made Striped Bass en Papillote with Brown Rice. It's pretty simple, and the provencal/Mediterranean-style sauce is sweet from the tomatoes and briny from the capers. It's also great for not making a mess because the fish is cooked in tin foil which you can just throw it out.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

2 1-inch pieces of striped bass filet

1 medium sized ripe tomato, or a handful of grape tomatoes, diced

2 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp drained capers

4 sprigs thyme

4 slices lemon (I used lime because I didn't have lemons, but I think lemon would work better)

salt and pepper

Brown rice cooked according to the directions (I used a Lundberg brown rice mix - it adds great nutty flavor and texture)

Directions:

Preheat oven to 400. Pat the fillets dry and season with salt. Line a baking sheet with tin foil and drizzle a bit of olive oil on it, then place the fish on top of the oil. Slide the lemon slices under the fish and top each with two sprigs of thyme.

Adobo-Marinated Fish

 

This is an excellent, affordable weeknight meal (from my fave Mexican book). The adobo sauce is pretty quick to whip up, and you can buy a cheaper type of fish (still want fresh) as you're getting so much flavor from the adobo. Top the fish with a little pico de gallo and a fresh squeeze of lime, and it's just delicious. I made it twice last week with blue fish (a fish I usually don't like, but in this case it works really well) and I think I may make it again this week. One time (pictured) I made a quick black bean dish as a side. Yum!

If you like Mexican food, I recommend keeping your pantry stocked with a variety of dried chiles. They last forever and they're great for making an impromptu chile powder or adobo. If they don't sell them near you, you can order dried chiles from Penzey's.

Ingredients:
Adobo Sauce
3 ounces guajillo chiles (about 12), wiped clean, stemmed, seeded, and deveined
3/4 cup water for blending, more if necessary
2 garlic cloves, peeled
1 1/2 tsp fine salt, or 1 1/2 tsp kosher salt
3/4 tsp sugar
1/4 tsp cumin

Fish Masala

This is another incredible Indian recipe from the talented Nimmy in Cochin. She made this for me and Jamie on our honeymoon and it was the best meal we had the whole trip. I decided to make it myself this weekend, and wow, it's amazing! I'm sure Nimmy's version is a little more practiced, but it's her recipe and it's fabulous. My friend Chelsea and I ate it up. It's such a unique recipe because you really don't see Indian style fish that often. There are wonderful spices and a secret ingredient that's such a funny surprise, but upon eating it you'd never guess it was there. I'm going to make it again tomorrow!

(Serves 2)
Ingredients:
2  1/2lb fish filets (1 lb total, any firm white fish)
1/2 tsp Chili Powder (Indian Chili Powder if you can get it)
1 tbsp fruit vinegar (I used apple cider)
1/2 cup sliced red onion
1" ginger, sliced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
2 green chilis split lengthwise
1 sprig curry leaves (okay to leave out if you can't find them)
1 cinnamon stick
2 cloves
1/2 tsp fenugreek seeds
1 tbsp coconut or vegetable oil
1 tbsp ketchup (secret ingredient)

Ina's Easy Sole Meuniere

This Ina recipe is from her cookbook "Back to Basics," another Christmas present (this one from my lovely sister-in-law, Katie - everyone seems to know the way to my heart). It's easy enough that I'm going to teach it to my novice-cook friend Alice, and it's so rich and tart and great. It serves two, but with some hearty sides it can serve four.

Ingredients:
1/2 cup flour
Kosher salt and black pepper
4 fresh sole fillets, 3-4 oz each
1 tsp lemon zest
6 tbsp freshly squeezed lemon juice
1 tbsp fresh parsley
6 tbsp butter

Directions:
Preheat oven to 200 and have 2 heat-proof plates ready.