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Pescado a la Veracruzana (Fish, Veracruz Style)

rivka — Fri, 10 Jun 2011 13:33:45 +0000

I grew up in a dairy household. This fact always elicits some “huh”s, lotsa “really?”s and even a few “ugh!”s but that’s the way it was, and I actually didn’t mind it, mostly. About two times a year, I’d really crave meat – but the only real option was takeout from Royal Dragon, the local kosher Chinese joint. It was always eaten on paper, always lukewarm. I taught myself pretty quickly to be satisfied without it.

At Friday night dinner, most of our crowd served chicken, meatballs, brisket. We usually had fish. Salmon teriyaki, tuna with mango salsa, flounder with lemon herb vinaigrette. (Gosh, can you tell I grew up in the nineties?)

If these fish dishes made occasional appearances on our Shabbat table, there was one that was so regular in its appearances, and so beloved, it was practically a part of the family. That dish is Huachinango a la Veracruzana. My mom’s version originated in an unassuming little cookbook called “Latin American Cooking.” It’s a scrawny little volume, doesn’t look like much. The recipes in it are simple and straightforward, and in my totally-not-expert opinion, they seem authentic.

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Sesame-Crusted Tuna on Arugula Salad

rivka — Thu, 29 Jul 2010 14:00:37 +0000

Much as I love to serve fish for dinner, I return to my weeks-old whining about the heat. How are we expected to endure an hour of 400-degree air in the kitchen, followed by several hours of still-not-cool temperatures, just to get a piece of protein on the table? We’re not, is the answer. We make a salad — any salad will do, but there are lots of nice ones here — and call it a night. But we both know that gets old. At a certain point, we start craving something more.

Here, then, is an entree that won’t blow the gasket on the delicate balance between the blazing outdoors and the “little engine that could” of an air conditioning system. It requires no braise, no long boil, but a quick flash-sear on a hot stovetop, followed by a rest in the fridge, while you set the table, stick your head in the freezer for a moment, and suck on an ice cube hoping for that sweet, sweet redemption known as fall.

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Whole Fish Roasted in Salt Crust

rivka — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 18:23:30 +0000

There’s a certain amount of risk involved in cooking. Many times, I spend all day prepping for a recipe that’s a total clunker. I’ve shelled out lots of cash on “novelty” ingredients that end up being nothing special. And I’ve definitely made my share of rookie mistakes that, if I were the type of normal cook that makes something more than once, probably wouldn’t happen nearly as often. Yes, D thinks I’m crazy. She’ll never understand why I’d pass up chocolate chip cookies to try my hand at chocolate-dipped hazelnut shortbread. Or why, instead of making my tried and true recipe for lemon curd, I insist on blowing 2 whole meyer lemons on a whole-lemon tart that was so saccharine, so unpleasantly textured, I nearly threw it out. But such is the life of a blogger: constantly in search of the next internet-worthy recipe, making plenty of duds along the way.

So imagine my delight when my hard work actually paid off. This wasn’t just any old success. On the contrary: it was a complete and total knockout.

I’ve been wanting to roast a whole fish for quite some time now. I’d been told it wasn’t particularly difficult, but pfff — it’s a whole fish! With a tail! And eyeballs! And it’s a whole fish. You get the point. But after a rough week at work, I decided hell! If other people can do it, why can’t I? And thus began the most fearless, the most exciting, and by far the most successful adventure I’ve ever had in my kitchen.

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Moroccan Salmon with Curried Yogurt

rivka — Mon, 25 Jan 2010 14:00:33 +0000

Though it doesn’t appear very often on this site, fish — salmon in particular — is a staple in the NDP kitchen. I like it because it’s a substantial cornerstone of a meal without being as heavy as meat often is. I frequently host lunch on Saturdays, and I almost always cook for these lunches in advance; salmon can be served cold with a dipping sauce, obviating the need to carefully par-bake it before reheating the next day to serve. Also, it’s delicious.

Last year, I frequently cooked fish “en papillote,” each filet wrapped with care in its own little parcel of parchment paper. It’s a very healthful way of cooking fish, in its own juices and little else. Sometimes I’d add slivers of thai bird chillies or slices of peach, but the method was always the same. This year, I’m planning to broil my fish more often. That little spot at the bottom of my oven doesn’t get enough airtime, and considering its ability to make sugar into caramel and turn anything that beautiful shade of brown, it really should.

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Sardine and Fava Bean Bruschetta

rivka — Fri, 03 Jul 2009 20:05:47 +0000

I can’t remember if I’ve ever written a love song to favas on this blog. I mean, I’ve written about them, but I probably haven’t sung their praises as much as they deserve. Starting in late May, I bother the farmers at my local market every Sunday, trying to subtly nudge them to pick their favas as soon as they’re ready so I can dig in. The first few weeks, I’m met with transparently frustrated replies of “they’re not ready, lady!” but around the second week in June, out they come. From them on, you’ll find me and my tote bags by the fava bin. That’s right.

Favas come double-wrapped, so to speak; they’re tucked in a waxy coating that’s nestled inside a pod. To eat favas, you pop open the pods, scoop out and blanch the beans, and then remove the outer shell. Work intensive? Yea, but you won’t find me complainin’. Favas are sweet and green and, with a little salt and not much else, the delicious essence of early summer.

While I usually just toss my favas in a salad or mix them with some pasta and other vegetables, I also really like fava bean spread. Mine is smooth enough to spread but still quite chunky, and laced with a whole lot of garlic and a squeeze of lemon. If I don’t finish it all before using it, I’ll spread it on a baguette and eat it just so. Or, if I’m really feelin’ it, I’ll top my bruschetta with some vinegar-and-oil-cured sardine fillets. The idea came to me from an Epicurious recipe for cannellini and sardine bruschetta. I love cannellini, but I don’t stock my pantry with dry or canned beans when fresh ones are so readily available during the summer, so I subbed in favas for the cannellini the recipe called for. The combination worked perfectly: the headiness of the garlicy fava spread stood up well to the sardines, which added just the right amount of richness and tang. Toasted baguette, more than a vehicle, was crunchy and light, a fine contrast for the favas and sardines perched atop it. I finished off the bruschetta simply, with a bit of olive oil and a grind of the pepper mill. It didn’t need much else.
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Summer vegetable (and fish) stew

rivka — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 15:49:37 +0000

If you’re anything like me, your fridge is swimming with zucchini and corn, your counters teeming with beautiful tomatoes. Not that I’m complaining, mind you — I wouldn’t dare, with summer produce this close to done — I’m just saying, I’ve got three bumper crops and I don’t even have a garden. What’s a girl to do?

Not fret, that’s for sure. I’ve found countless] great sources for ideas to use up the big three. Not to mention the inner-workings of my own crazy imagination…which led to this summer vegetable (and fish) stew. The fish in () because it’s optional. (Not that everything in this recipe isn’t optional — hell, you could change the stew entirely for all I care — but I’ve been told by my friends that I need to be more assertive and instructive, less “just do what you want”ish. I’m trying.) You want to know a secret? I didn’t plan on making this a fish stew at all. I planned on making braised zucchini-ratatouille dish, then pan-frying some turbot fillets and laying them nicely on top. All went as planned, until I flipped my fillets (which were doing beautifully in a generous helping of browned butter). I’d hoped for them to have a nice, crisp browned crust, but instead the grains had separated and stuck to the bottom of the pan and it didn’t look pretty at all. For your sake — so that you wouldn’t have to look at a picture of a yummy-ugly dish — I took the ratatouille, tossed it right back in the pan, and started spearing the fillets with my spatula to break them up a bit. As I finished them off in the ratatouille, they started to break down a bit, forming a nice-looking stew. I served the stew (to myself and D) with a slice of good, crusty sourdough, which proved ideal for mopping up the juices at the bottom of my bowl. What started as a mistake ended…quite nicely, if you ask me.
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Tilapia en papillote, purple potatoes, chile verde sauce

rivka — Tue, 09 Oct 2007 01:36:00 +0000

Ok, lots of words in the title, I know, but it’s not really all that complicated to make.

I was in a creative mood last night, and I’d just read a post from Elise at Simply Recipes describing a recipe for Chile Verde. Pig is pretty high on the treif list, but I love tomatillos, and hot peppers are my new favorite food, so I figured I’d take a stab at making the dish sans pork — which basically amounts to a yummy and versatile green sauce. I made several adjustments which I’ve spelled out in the recipe (below).

Now, tilapia en papillote.

“En papillote” is French for “in paper.” This cooking technique involves creating a steam packet out of parchment paper, which seals flavors and juices into whatever steams inside. I ususally layer a protein (fish, meat, tofu, even) with fruit and/or vegetables, spices, salt and pepper, and just a few dashes of sauce or scented oil, depending on the recipe. Last week, my mother served salmon en papillote with peaches, julienned carrots and red peppers, and a dash of sesame oil — simple and absolutely delightful.

The technique is a very healthy way to cook: it requires no oil, and ingredients are cooked just to doneness, so that they retain most of their nutrients. It’s also relatively easy and quick: Just place the fish on the parchment paper, top with the other elements (or place them beneath the fish), fold up, and bake in the oven. Finally, en papillote makes for a beautiful presentation, as the fish and all its accoutrements are unwrapped and plated tableside. I know, it sounds like a lot of fussing, but it’s really not that bad. Think of it as a ziploc sip n’ steam bag but it’s cheaper because it’s just a piece of paper. Plus, it won’t leak dioxins into your dinner the way plastic does. One rule of thumb about en papillote cooking: everything you cook inside the paper must have more or less the same cooking time. This means that if you’re including carrots, potatoes, or other starchy things that take a while to soften, you must slice them very thinly so that they will cook more quickly. When you make this (yes, you will make this), let me know how it goes.

Chile Verde Sauce
2 Anaheim (or other) chiles — Elise uses jalapeños
3 tomatillos, husks removed and cleaned well
1 small yellow onion, diced
3 cloves of garlic
salt
olive oil

Put tomatillos and garlic cloves under a broiler for about 12 minutes, until the tomatillos’ skins are a browned and the flesh is soft. Remove, and allow to cool. Meanwhile, sauté the onions in the olive oil over low heat, until soft, translucent and caramelized.

Roast peppers naked on a gas stove (as seen above — yowza!) until their entire skin is charred. Put in a peper bag and allow to steam for a couple minutes; then remove, run under water, and slide the skin right off, exposing the flesh of the pepper. chop coarsely.

Put the tomatillos in a blender and pulse. Add, then chiles, and season liberally with salt. Transfer to a bowl and store, covered, in the fridge for up to a week.

Tilapia en papillote with purple potatoes
serves 2.
2 filets of tilapia
2 pieces parchment paper, about three times the size of the filets
2 purple potatoes
1 lemon
salt and pepper
buckwheat honey

Lay tilapia filets in the center of the pieces of parchment paper.
Slice the potatoes VERY thinly (otherwise they will take longer to cook than the fish)
Slice the lemons. Stack the lemons and the potatoes in a domino-effect on top of the filet (I did them separately, but one may alternate them also for a more exciting presentation.) Alternatively, place the potatoes beneath the fish and the lemons on top.
Season with salt and pepper, and drizzle 1/2 a teaspoon (max!) of buckwheat honey atop each filet.
Wrap the filets as follows:(Like my elementary school drawings?)
Step 1: place fish in the center of paper with potatoes, lemons, salt, pepper and honey.
Step 2: fold the LONG sides of the paper over the fish toward the center so that they overlap.
Step 3: making sure that the paper stays overlapped, fold the short ends BENEATH the fish toward the center. In the finished packet, the fish should be resting on the two short sides of the paper (folded so that they’re each in a double layer), keeping the packet closed.

Ok, that was the hard part. Now put the packets on a baking sheet, and insert into a 350-degree oven for about 15 minutes. You may have to leave them in for 20, depending on the thickness of the filets. I always open my own to check it so that I don’t serve anyone accidentally undercooked fish.

That’s basically it: for this dish, I drizzled a bit of honey over the chile verde, then plated the fish atop the sauce, and garnished with a sliced pear to complement the acidity of the chile verde. I’d probably skip the honey on the chile next time, as it tends to overpower the flavor of the chile.

*Phew!* enjoy.

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