Wednesday, June 15, 2011

Fisherman's Dream [Insert obscene joke here]

It's not what you think. This relatively complex fish dish is very pretty and delicious to boot. My mom presents this is the piéce de résistance at any family party. The younger me used to throw a fit when party guests poked and broke the fish apart, completely ruining the aesthetics. 

I've omitted the MSG the original recipe called for. I try not to use carcinogens in my cooking if I can help it.

This grouper's stylin' in stripes.


Ingredients: 

1 ½ kilo apahap or lapulapu (grouper)
2 calamansi or 1 slice of lemon
2 medium size onions, chopped
2 medium sized tomatoes, chopped
4 tbsp. white wine
½ c. olive oil
1 ½ c. water
1/3 c. grated cheese
2 tbsp. butter
extra salt and pepper
1 medium sized boiled beet, chopped
1 medium sized boiled carrots
4 tbsp. chopped sweet pickle relish or sweet pickles

Scale and clean fish thoroughly. Cut diagonal slashes on sides of fish. Dredge with calamansi or lemon juice, salt and pepper. In a baking dish arrange onions and tomatoes, and lay the fish on them. Put in the wine, olive oil, and water. Sprinkle grated cheese on top of the fish and dot with butter. Season with a little salt and pepper.
Bake at 350 for 45 minutes to 1 hour. When done, place fish on a serving dish and cover the sauce over it. Decorate with chopped beets on the band across the fish. Alternate with chopped carrots and chopped pickles.

Sauce:
2 tbsp. butter
2 tbsp. toasted flour
1 ½ c. fish stock
2 tbsp. grated cheese
salt
pepper

Melt butter in pan. Remove from heat. Add toasted flour and strained fish stock (if you don't know how to toast flour, here's what you do: heat flour over a high heat in a pan until it browns a little. Done.) Season with salt and pepper. Stir over low heat until slightly thick. Add grated cheese and pour sauce over fish just before serving. 

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