Coming from the Northern part of India, I had no exposure to cooking fish. Fish is available seasonally and we only ate it in the winters. That too was fried fish bought from our favorite joint and eaten piping hot with green chutney and onion rings marinated in lime juice. It was only about 4 years ago after moving to Singapore that I had access to plenty of fresh catch. I had to learn how to cook fish .... from choosing a good piece of fish (4 years and still learning) to deboning and skinning fish. Then came cooking ..... it took a bit of experimentation to know which fish was best for frying, which one steamed better and which one would make your curry taste wonderful.
My husband really likes fish and I was always looking for a recipe which could substitute fish for a piece of grilled meat in an evening dinner and be easy to prepare as well. I came across this recipe on allrecipes.com. The idea is simple - put your fish in foil packets, add all the flavors you want and bake it 200 C for 20 minutes. Its really as easy as that and this recipe is a staple in my kitchen. I cannot count how many times I have made it and we love it.
Over time I have experimented with the spices I use, the flavorings for the fish and types of fish to be used in this recipe and my all time favorite is salmon fillets or salmon steaks. Salmon holds up beautifully to the cooking process and adapts to all kinds of flavors. From italian spices and flavors to mexican style fish with sliced jalapenos, salmon will absorb it all and the final product will be rich, flaky and full of the flavors you chose for the day.
I also like to bake the fish on a layer of sliced boiled potatoes. The potatoes absorb the flavors of the fish and the spices beautifully and like to serve this fish over a bed of cooked rice and steamted veggies. Sprinkle the juice from the fish on the vegetables and serve it hot with a glass of refresing white wine .... my choice will be a crisp chardonnay or fruity Moscato but feel free to pair it with the beverage of your choice.
Ingredients:
2 salmon fillets
1/2 cup chopped tomatoes
1 medium onion chopped
1 spring onion chopped
few sprigs of coriander
1 tsp red thai chilli chopped
few slices of lemon
2 tablespoon lemon juice
sea salt to taste (please try not to use regular table salt!!)
mixed italian herbs
dried fresh basil leaves
3 tsp Italian salad dressing
Freshly ground cracked pepper
Extra Virgin olive oil
2 medium potatoes - peeled, sliced and boiled till al dente
Boiled/steamed mixed vegetables (carrots/beans/brocolli/cauliflower)
Cooked plain rice
Method:
1. Mix the chopped onions, tomatoes, red chilli, salt, pepper. Preheat oven to 200 C
2. On a piece of aluminium foil, put some potato slices, sprinkle sea salt and pepper and a tiny bit of olive oil. Place your piece of fish skin side down on the potatoes, sprinkle the fish with salt, pepper, dried basil and mixed italian seasoning. Rub these onto the fish and cover with lemon slices and put some lemon juice. Put the chopped onion tomato mixture on top. Sprinkle with some olive oil on top and add 1 1/2 tsp of italian salad dressing on top.
3. Close the edges of the foil and seal the edges tightly to make a foil packet. Place the foil parcels on a baking sheet and bake in pre-heated oven for 20 minutes.
4. In the mean time, place some hot cooked rice on a plate. In a pan, add the boiled/steamed vegetables and sprinkle with some olive oil and salt and pepper and cooked over medium heat for 2-3 minutes to gently heat the vegetables and season them with the salt and pepper.
5. Arrange the vegetables around the rice.
6. When the fish is done, take out the foil parcels from the oven and open them. there will be a lot of juice from the fish and the vegetables so open the packet carefully. Take out the fish and potatoes and all other chopped veggies and put them on the bed of rice. Taste a bit of the juice in the packet, adjust for seasoning and add about a 1/2tsp of lemon juice to it. Sprinkle this juice on the fish and the vegetables and serve hot.
0 Yorumlar