Posts from the ‘Seafood’ Category

Feb 13

Panko Crusted Fish Sticks with Lime,Tarragon Aioli

Making fish sticks is simple and really so much better than buying commercially prepared frozen ones from the supermarket. They take almost no time to prepare. I know its easier to buy pre-made foods, but why not make your own, you have control over the amount of salt and know exactly what is in them. Ketchup is always great for dipping but I made an aioli that is slightly more sophisticated, don’t get me wrong, I love ketchup but sometimes you just need or want something a little different. You can make the fish sticks and freeze them all you need to do is heat them in the oven and you have a quick and delicious meal in a snap.

The Aioli:

2 large Cloves garlic (Give the garlic a quick crush to release the flavor) Don’t pulverize

1 tablespoon chopped fresh tarragon (or 2 tsp dried)

2 egg yolks

1/4 cup +2 tbs garlic infused olive oil

1/2 cup minus 2 tbs vegetable oil (canola)

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice

1 teaspoon Lime zest (the zest of one whole lime)

1/2 teaspoon sea salt

black pepper (3 turns of the pepper mill)

To make the garlic olive oil. You will need a small sauce pan add the 2 peeled garlic cloves to the olive oil and simmer on very low heat until garlic is soft be very careful not to let the garlic get brown turn off the flame after just a few minutes and let the garlic sit in the oil until it softens.. Let cool before making the aioli. I like to make this infused oil ahead of time, sitting overnight gives a more profound garlic flavor.
Add to blender the 2 egg yolks, the cooled cooked garlic cloves, lime juice, lime zest,tarragon salt and pepper. Blend until smooth.
With blender running slowly add the vegetable oil and garlic infused olive oil. The aioli will be thick and creamy and a lovely light green. Adjust seasoning and citrus to your taste.

Panko Crusted Fish Sticks:

1 pound Firm to semi firm fish (I use cod or wild chilean sea bass)

1 cup Panko

2 large eggs beaten

salt and pepper to taste

Oil for deep frying

Heat your oil I like to deep fry the fish sticks, approximately 4 inches of oil in a heavy fry pan.
Cut your fish into pieces, dip in egg and then in panko.
Carefully drop your fish sticks into hot oil and fry until golden brown, Remove and place on paper towel to absorb any extra oil. Add additional salt if you like directly after they come out of the oil
Serve with the aioli or whatever dipping sauce you like.

Feb 5

5 Comments

Shrimp Scampi

I was on the phone with my daughter last night and we were discussing food, what else, right?? She made Shrimp Scampi and it sounded so delicious that I had to have some too! I had 18 colossal shrimp just waiting to be eaten. These shrimp are the size of small lobsters, you don’t have to use shrimp that big but I do recommend a larger size shrimp. This took me about 25 minutes to put together and I plan on enjoying it with some bread and a glass of Rose’. You can of course eat this with Pasta which is fairly traditional, I would do a simple garlic and olive oil sauce for the pasta.

Makes: Two large or 4 smaller servings

12-18 fresh large shrimp peeled and deveined

1 large garlic clove peeled

1/4 cup olive oil

1 tsp lemon zest

pinch of sea salt

Clean and devein your shrimp. Lay them on paper towels to dry (Its important that they be as dry as possible) I pat them dry then lay them on fresh dry paper towels for 15-30 minutes.

Peel your garlic clove and slice, place in mortar with a pinch of sea salt and smash it, add some of the olive oil and mix it up. Place shrimp either in bowl or ziplock bag, pour the garlic and oil from the mortar onto the shrimp, add the rest of the oil and the lemon zest. Refrigerate for 30 minutes Smoosh the bag around to make sure the shrimp are coated with the marinade.

Preparing the dish:

4 tbs butter

juice of 1 lemon

handful of parsley chopped

splash of olive oil

Turn broiler on and position rack in second rung closest to the flame. Heat skillet so that its very hot. Place some shrimp (I do 6 at a time) in the very hot pan and sear them just about a minute or less on each side (this will depend on the size of the shrimp). Immediately remove to a plate and add more shrimp. Continue until all the shrimp are seared. They will not be cooked through. You may have a little olive oil and garlic left from the marinade. I just dumped it in the skillet after the shrimp were cooked and quickly browned the garlic and poured it over the shrimp.

You will either need an oval gratin pan or a baking dish. Add the butter, splash of olive oil and lemon juice and place in the oven for a few minutes so that the butter melts. Remove from the oven place the shrimp in the baking pan or pans, spoon some of the butter/olive oil/lemon juice on top of shrimp and place them in the oven for 5 minutes. Remove, check for doneness. Sprinkle with the chopped parsley, a pinch of sea salt and some pepper.

Jan 26

6 Comments

Featured Recipe-Asian Inspired Salmon

Every week I am going to feature a great recipe that I have made and I feel you should know about. Inpatskithen recipe for Asian Inspired Salmon is the perfect quick and delicious meal. The glaze is outstanding. Sweet and spicy, with just the right amount of acid to balance it. It compliments the salmon perfectly. I love that the glaze is also the marinade, I used a blood orange marmalade and added a little lemon zest (I love lemon in just about everything). Pat is an active homecook and you can see her many recipes not only on her blog but on food52. This recipe was also a finalist in Whole Foods salmon contest. You can visit her blog http://www.inpatskitchen.blogspot.com/ or view her other recipes at food52.com http://www.food52.com/cooks/21631_inpatskitchen

Asian Inspired Salmon by Inpatskitchen

Serves 4

1 1/2 pounds skinless salmon fillets cut into 4 equal pieces

1 13 to 14 ounce jar orange marmalade

1/4 cup rice vinegar

2 crushed garlic cloves

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/4 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes

1/4 teaspoon ground ginger

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 tablespoons sugar

2 teaspoons sesame oil

Hot cooked white rice

3/4 cup sliced green onions

Combine the marmalade, vinegar,soy sauce, garlic, red pepper, ginger, salt, sugar and sesame oil in a small sauce pan and simmer for about 5 minutes.
Let the marinade cool and then pour about half of it over the salmon fillets and marinate them for about 1 hour in the fridge.
Broil or grill the marinated fillets for about ten minutes or until flaky.
Reheat the remaining marinade and serve the salmon over the hot cooked rice drizzled with the warm marinade and topped with green onion slices.