Today’s recipe is a meal for a special occasion. It’s sablefish, that species of deep-sea fish common to the North Pacific Ocean. The fish is also known as black cod. Now, let me say it up front, sable is not cheap. It’s one of the kings of fishes in terms of price. Why? Well, another nickname for sable is “butterfish.” That’s because it’s fattier than Pacific cod or halibut, which gives a luxurious mouthful, but milder than salmon or tuna. It  has a creamy white flesh balanced by a black skin that gives the fish a rich buttery flavor and a smooth silky texture. Every bite is heavenly.

Given its pedigree, sablefish it’s best prepared by simple pan-frying. No fancy sauces, preparation or crusting for this sucker. Simple cooking lets you savor the depth of flavor in sablefish. The easiest way to cook is with a simple mix of garlic powder, salt, black pepper and oregano. For the recipe given, I still had some fresh herbs leftover from my summer plantings. They were tarragon, thyme and sweet marjoram, and that’s what I used. If you don’t have fresh, you can substitute dried. And it can be herbs of your choice. You can use sage, dill, rosemary, chives, whatever is available. Cooked in butter, or a butter/olive oil combo, and you have an easy but fabulous dinner.

SABLEFISH

Ingredients:

4 6-ounce sablefish fillets
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon fresh chopped tarragon or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon fresh sweet marjoram or 1 teaspoon dried
½ teaspoon garlic powder
2 tablespoons butter
3 tablespoons dry white wine

Instructions:

1. Rinse fillets under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
2.  Brush with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil. Season well on both sides of fillets with the tarragon, thyme and sweet marjoram. Sprinkle with garlic powder.
3.  In a large skillet or frying pan, heat the butter and reaming 2 tablespoons of olive oil over medium-high heat. Add sablefish fillets and cook about 3 minutes per side. In the end the fish should be golden brown on the outside but opaque white on the inside. Add white wine and cook over high heat, one minute more. Serve immediately.
   Yield: 4 servings.

In Portuguese and Spanish culture, churrasco is the name for grilled beef. Eventually the name came to refer to any cut of meat that was grilled, inclusive of chicken and, yes, fish. And that is the recipe given today: Grilled Fish in Churrasco Marinade. In this recipe, the best fish used for grilling, are fish steaks, They are meaty and can benefit from the marinade. You can try fish fillets. But my experience is that fillets are just too delicate for the marinating and grilling process involved.

The recipe is basic and simple. It just requires that the fish be marinated overnight in the churrasco mix. In terms of the fish steaks, any good fish steak will do, be it haddock, kingfish, tuna, halibut,  bluefish, salmon, even shark meat. When grilling, be aware that fish steaks cook best over a medium-hot fire.

This time around we served the fish steaks with Israeli couscous, also known as “pearl” couscous. Of course, you can serve it with any side dish desired, or even a salad.

GIRLLED FISH IN CHURRASCO MARINADE

Ingredients:

4 fish steaks, about 8 ounces each, 1 to 1½-inches thick
½ cup beer or ale
¼ cup white wine (any kind)
1 lemon, sliced into rings
1 packet sazon
¼ teaspoon dried oregano
¼ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ teaspoon dill
Salt and ground black pepper to taste

Instructions:

1. Rinse fish steaks under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
2.  For churrasco marinade: In a small bowl, combine remaining ingredients.
3.  Place fish in a zip lock bag, add marinade and refrigerate overnight.
4.  Next day, grill 1 to 2 minutes per side for rare, 2-3 minutes per side for medium-rare, or 1-2 minutes longer for well-done.
   Yield: 4 servings.

Recently we got some fresh trout. About the only time we get trout is when some friend goes fishing in some nearby lake and brings back some. The classic way of cooking trout is the way we did it when we went camping: breaded and fried in a cast-iron skillet. The I thought about the elegant Trout Almondine, or trout with almonds. Wanna make the ordinary trout shine? This is it. It’s a great dish that goes well with boiled parsley potatoes, and your favorite vegetable. Add a well chilled white wine, like a Pouilly Fuisse, and you have the makings of an unforgettable meal.

TROUT WITH ALMONDS

Ingredients:

4 medium-sized trout, cleaned
Salt and ground black pepper to taste
2 tablespoons lemon  juice
3/4 cup flour
1 teaspoon grated nutmeg
1 teaspoon dried thyme
3/4 cup milk
2/3 cup butter
1 cup slivered almonds

Instructions:

1. Placed fish on a working surface and rub them all over with the salt, pepper and 1 tablespoon of the lemon juice.
2.  Season the flour with the nutmeg and thyme, and place in a shallow dish.  Place the milk in another dish. Dip the trout, one by one, first in the milk and then in the seasoned flour.
3. In a heavy-bottomed frying pan or skillet large enough to hold the fish in one layer, melt half of the butter over moderate heat. When the foam subsides, add the trout and fry from 4 to 6 minutes on each side or until the flesh flakes easily. With a spatula, transfer the fish to a warmed serving dish.
4. Add remaining butter to the frying pan. When the foam subsides, add almonds and remaining lemon juice and cook, stirring frequently, for 3 to 5 minutes or until the almonds are lightly browned. Remove the pan from the heat and pour the mixture over the trout. Serve at once.
Yield: 4 servings.

This is a recipe I acquired from my Jewish brethren. It’s Fish Baked in Milk. In my culture, we would never consider baking fish in milk. But leave it to the chosen people to come up with this dish which, by the way, is delicious. Nothing could be simpler to prepare with minimal ingredients. Served with a baked potato, or with a grain, or even pasta, it’s a dish made in heaven.

FISH BAKED IN MILK

Ingredients:

1 pound fish fillets, your choice
Flour
Salt and ground black pepper to taste pepper
Pinch  of dried oregano
1¼  cup milk
1 tablespoon fresh chopped parsley

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Rinse fish fillets under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
3.  Placed in a greased baking dish. Dust with flower, sprinkle with salt, pepper and oregano. Pour milk over fish and bake about 30 minutes or until tender. Sprinkle with parsley and serve.
   Yield: 4 servings.

For this dish you can use fish fillets or 4 fish steaks. It’s a simple recipe of fish in a lemon-thyme dressing, or sauce. The fish can be any firmed flesh white fillets such as haddock, cod, perch, turbot, sea bass, grouper, tilapia, snapper, whatever you can find.

This is an easy baked dish. So, the next time you are in a hurry and want to prepare an easy nutritious meal full of flavor, this is it.  Note that if you’re using frozen fish fillets, the cooking time, as shown in the recipe,  is a bit longer. Regular or thawed fish fillets require less time to cook. With a side of vegetables, with a grain or potatoes, this dish will satisfy.

In past posts I’ve included lemon zest and I’ve gotten questions about how to zest a lemon.  Lemon zest is the outer yellow layer of the lemon, and when scraped from the lemon, it adds flavor to any dish. The easiest way I know to zest is by simply using a cheese grater. First, wash lemon under cold running water, and pat dry with kitchen or paper towels. Then place the lemon against the smallest holes in the grater. The larger holes are for shredding, and you want grated lemon rind. Simply move the lemon back and forth as you would with grating cheese (be careful not to grate your fingers). And that’s it, lemon zest. There are special citrus zesters out there and, if you want, you can buy one of those. But I find the cheese grater just as good.

FISH FILLETS WITH LEMON AND THYME DRESSING

Ingredients:

2 pounds fish fillets, 4 to 6 ounces each
6 tablespoons butter, divided
Finely grated zest and juice of 1 large lemon
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
4 sprigs fresh lemon thyme or 1 teaspoon dried

Instructions:

1. Heat broiler to medium high. If using a broiler/oven, heat to 450 degrees F.
2.  Rinse fillets under cold running water and pat dry with pepper towels.
3.  Arrange fillets in a baking dish or pan. Broil 5 to 7 inches from the heat source for  about 5 minutes. Remove from oven and place 1/2 tablespoon butter over each fillet. Sprinkle with 2 teaspoons lemon  jiuce, then season with salt and pepper. Return to oven and cook an additional 7-10 minutes for frozen fillets, or 4-6 minutes for fresh or thawed fish.
4.  While fish is cooking, add remaining butter to a saucepan with the lemon zest, remaining lemon juice and mustard. Heat gently, whisking until melted. Add the thyme and cook about 2 minutes more. Serve the fish, pouring the lemon-thyme dressing over the fillets.
   Yield: 4 servings.

At one time, dried salt cod was a popular food worldwide. It was a common staple throughout the Mediterranean basin. It was well represented in Spanish, Greek and French cuisines; but it was also integral to the native cooking of places as far flung as India and Canada. In recent times it has fallen out of favor as modern transportation and refrigeration has made seafood more available, as least in  the developed world.

The thing to remember about salt cod is just that, it has an astronomically high sodium content. This was done back in days of yore in order to preserve it during transport. As noted, that is no loner a problem. Still, there are some of us who still sing its praises. The sticking point, now as then, is that the product has to be prepared before cooking. The common practice is soaking the salt cod in cold water, and changing the water at least three times. For regular salt cod the usual soaking time is from 6 to 8 hours.  The common procedure is to leave it overnight, then drain and rinse under cold running water. The cod is then placed in a pot of boiling water to cover and simmered gently for 15 minutes or so. It is drained again and, when cool, the skin and bones are peeled way. Lastly, the fish is flaked so that its ready to cook.  Luckily, today you can buy deboned salt cod. So, at least, that part of the process can be omitted.

You probably think the preparation time involved is a hell of a bother just to eat cod. But not many good things are as inexpensive or as versatile. It can acquire any number of flavors during cooking, depending upon the condiments used. It will complement almost any vegetable or grain, even pasta. In our culture we serve it with rice, or bianda (root plants), eggplant, or tostones (green fried plantains).  With whatever side dish, or even by itself with plain bread, salt cod is extraordinary.

BACALAO GUISADO
(Stewed Codfish)

Ingredients:

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 medium onion, peeled and thinly sliced
1 medium green bell pepper, cored, seeded and chopped
1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed
1 bay leaf
¼ teaspoon sage
¼ teaspoon white pepper
1 8-ounce can tomato sauce
1 pound dried salt cod (prepared beforehand for cooking; see above)

1. Heat olive oil in a heavy frying pan or skillet. Add onion, bell pepper, garlic, bay leaf, sage and white pepper. Sauté over medium heat for about 3 minutes.
2. Add tomato sauce and cook for 3 minutes longer.
3. Add flaked codfish. Lower heat and simmer, covered, for 30 minutes.
4. Serve with favorite vegetable or grain.
Yield: 4 servings.

This is a recipe that will provide a great dinner in minutes. And, if you like salmon, you’ll love this sucker.  Honey-Lime Glazed Salmon provides fillets with a flavor all its own. Glossy and sweet-tart, it’s a memorable dish. And if you like it spicy, you can add a teaspoon of chili powder to the honey-lime glaze and still wow your guests and family.

For the salmon, you can use salmon fillets, already cut. Or you can purchase one 2-pound center-cut skin-on salmon, and cut into into four pieces. Either way will render a great meal easy to prepare, and a strong flavorful crust on the salmon that will make it unforgettable.

HONEY-GLAZED SALMON

Ingredients:

4 (5-ounce) salmon fillets or 1 (2-pound) center-cut salmon, cut into 4 fillets
¼ cup honey
1 teaspoon grated lime zest plus 2 tablespoons juice
½ teaspoon cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon cayenne pepper
1 teaspoon brown sugar
¼ teaspoon salt
¼ teaspoon cornstarch
1/8 teaspoon ground black pepper
1 tablespoon olive oil

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 300 degrees.
2. Wash salmon fillets under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
3.  In a small saucepan, whisk together the honey, grated lime zest, lime juice, cornstarch and cayenne pepper. Simmer over medium-high heat until thickened, about 1 minute. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.
4.  In a small bowl, combine sugar, salt, cornstarch and pepper. Rub this mixture evenly over flesh side of salmon fillets.
5.  Heat oil (until just smoking) over medium-high heat in a 12-inch oven-safe skillet (I prefer cast-iron). Lay fillets flesh side down in skillet and cook until well browned, about 1 minute. Carefully flip salmon and cook on skin side for 1 minute. Remove from heat and spoon honey-lime glaze over fillets. Transfer skillet to the oven and bake until center is translucent and tender when checked with a fork or pairing knife, about 7-10 minutes.
   Yield: 4 servings.

At the beginning of the summer I purchased a parsley herb plant. And the sucker took off. I now have a veritable jungle of parsley. So I have to use it up before the Fall hits our area. This recipe is one of those efforts. I’ve used parsley for everything, so why not fish fillets embedded in the stuff? You probably could do the same recipe with chicken or lamb, even steaks. You would just have to modify the baking procedure so it accommodates  chicken, lamb or beef.

This recipe goes well with any white, firm fleshed fillets, be it haddock, cod, turbot, perch, pollock, ext. With your favorite side dish, be it potatoes, vegetables, rice, couscous, or even pasta, it can’t be beat.

PARSLEY FISH FILLETS

Ingredients:

2 pounds fish fillets
½ cup olive oil
2 tablespoons white vinegar
Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1 tablespoons chopped fresh oregano or 1 teaspoon dried
1 cup chopped fresh parsley (loosely packed)

Instructions:

1. Preheat oven to 375 degrees F.
2. Rinse fish fillets under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
3. Place fillets in a greased skillet or pan. Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar. Season well with the salt, pepper and oregano. Top with parsley.
4. Transfer to oven and bake until fillets are tender and flake easily with a fork, about ½ hour.
   Yield: 4 servings.

The only steamed fish I’m familiar with are steamed sea-bass, very popular in Cantonese cuisine; and ginger steamed fish. Both are Asian dishes, where steamed fish, usually whole (with the head intact) is a very common method of preparing seafood. Then I started thinking, why not a steamed fish dish replete with spices and herbs common to Puerto Rican cooking? Since my purview is Boricua cooking as established on the U.S. mainland, especially during the diaspora in New York, I call it fish fillets – Nuyorican Style.

Let me recap: Nuyorican is a term given to Puerto Ricans born or raised in New York City. It was a derogatory term coined by Puerto Ricans on the island who regarded Nuyoricans with some antipathy. Like the homosexuals and Lesbians on the mainland who took the term gay and made it a sign of pride, we did the same with Nuyorican. So, here it is, Steamed Fish Fillets – Nuyorican Style. With a side of steamed veggies, such as sweet peas and zucchini  (as we did with this recipe) it is a winner.

Now, this dish calls for a steamer. You can use a regular steamer, a wok with a steamer attachment, or a bamboo steamer. If you don’t have one, you can jerryrig one: In a large pot or pan, place an 18.5 ounce can in the center. Fill the pot or pan so that the can is halfway standing in water. Place a plate with fish fillets on top, bring water to a boil, cover and steam as you would normally. That’s it. What is that old saying: Necessity is the mother of invention? Also, any white firm-fleshed fish fillet can work for this one, be it haddock, cod, perch, turbot, sea bass, pollock, halibut, ext.

STEAMED FISH FILLETS – NUYORICAN STYLE

Ingredients:

2 pound fish fillets
3 tablespoons olive oil
1 tablespoon red wine vinegar
Juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon fresh chopped oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried
1 tablespoon fresh chopped dill or 1 teaspoon dried
½ teaspoon garlic powder
¼ cup chopped fresh scallions

Instructions:

1. Rinse fish fillets under cold running water and pat dry with paper towels.
2. In  a small bowl or cup, whisk together the olive oil, vinegar and lemon juice until it has emulsified. This is the lemon dressing.
3. Season the fillets with the oregano, dill and garlic powder. Place on a plate and drizzle with the lemon dressing. Sprinkle with the scallions, place on steamer half filled with water, bring to a boil, cover and steam until fish is tender, about 5 minutes.
Yield: 4 servings.