Fish For The Beginner

Published by Carolin on Tagged Fish, Dinner

Fish can be a wonderful food. Really it can be. I love fish. I know I don’t eat near enough of it, but when I do I absolutely love it. But not everyone feels the same as I do. I know so many people who can’t stand fish. I always question them on why they despise it so. They all have these memories of some stinky smelly fish dish that someone cooked for them, usually their mother and were made to eat it. Their moms saying “it is good for you so eat it”. You know I hate that and as a mom of an extremely choosey eater I can not get away with that. By the way the choosey eater won’t eat fish.

But it is funny because if you ease a person into a nice but simple fish dish they most likely will start to enjoy it. The thing that most people hate about fish is not so much the taste but the smell, and what do we do first. We naturally smell first. Now if you are serving a fish dish and it stinks like some hold fish hut then that fish was not fresh when you bought it. I remember being at a restaurant years ago with 2 picky eaters. Now they both ordered fish and chips for lunch and I was having some funky Thai pizza, which they both said yuk to when I ordered it. Well our food was coming to the table and without a word of a lie I could smell their fish a chips way before it got to the table. It stunk. Well guess what they said, “Man does your pizza stink” can you believe this. I was shocked. I said, “It is not my pizza it is your lunch”. Believe it or not they ate those fish and chips I swear to god my stomach turned.

When buying fish I personally think you should buy it where you can smell it and if you are buying a whole fish you can get up close and personal with it. That is not to say you have to go to a fishmonger. You go to the grocery store as well. Just make sure it is a grocery store that sell fresh fish, meaning if you want you can smell it. Ask the person who is serving you if you can smell it. If it smells like the sea then it is fresh. If you can smell it before it gets to you then it isn’t fresh. If you are able to poke it with your finger and it is firm to the touch this is a good sign freshness. If you can stick your finger through it, not so good. Now if you are buying a whole fish, the above goes for this as well but also look at the eyes, if they are clear, this is good. Cloudy not so good.

If you are new to experimenting with fish. I would suggest maybe talking to a fishmonger and go with a milder fish, then ease yourself into the stronger fish. It is like starting off with chicken and moving onto duck.

Fish is a wonderful food it not only is healthy in more than one way. It is low in fat and the fat that is in it is extremely good for you. Brain food and we can always use some of that.

I am going to pass on a recipe that is great to get people who are not sure about fish. This dish has a topping, which is extremely tasty on its own. So by adding it on top of the fish, just brings some extra flavor for the beginner to enjoy.

FISH FOR THE BEGINNER

2lbs of fish fillets (I use snapper, you could use sole or any mild white fish)
3Tbsp lemon juice
¾ cup Parmesan cheese grated
6Tbsp butter
5Tbsp mayo
4Tbsp chopped green onion
1/4tsp salt
Few dashes hot sauce

Preheat Broiler

Pat dry fish. Line a baking sheet with parchment or use a non-stick pan. Place fish on the baking sheet sprinkle both sides with the lemon juice. Let stand for about 15 min, you’ll notice the fish turning a bit whiter. The lemon juice is starting the cooking process.

Combine the rest of the ingredients. At this point taste this mixture to see if you have to adjust the salt or hot sauce. I can eat this just as is.

Broil fish about 4-5 inches from heat broiler, for about 6-8 minutes. It may take longer depending on the thickness of the fish. You’ll know it is done because it will flake easily. Spread the cheese mixture over the top of each piece of fish. Broil until golden brown.

Serves 6

You can serve this dish with a simple rice pilaf, a nice crisp green salad and a nice Chardonnay.

Mm Mm good

TIP OF THE DAY
When cooking rice, bring the water to a boil add some salt and oil. Then add your rice. Once it comes back up to a boil turn down to low, cover and leave until down. Brown rice is about 45min white rice about 20 min. By doing it this way it doesn’t seem to stick to the bottom.