Fish

Page 221

Stir-Fried Squid with Garlic and Basil (Thailand)

We both like squid in all its preparations. I actually nailed the cooking time and temp here and the squid wasn’t chewy. Problem was, this dish just tasted like squid! It needed more Thai peppers and more of something else to cut the squid flavor. I liked it okay, but Hoang was not a fan.

30 minutes total
Would make it again? No

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Page 232

Fish Fillets Poached in Caramel Sauce (Vietnam) – That’s Hoang’s thumbs-down

Sounds delicious, doesn’t it? Here’s the thing: It’s not. The fish (we used catfish) is poached in nuoc mam (or nam pla) which is fish sauce. So if you plan on making this, prepare for your house to stink of fish sauce for a weak and for your throat to burn of sweet fishiness for at least a day. I didn’t hate it, but I had a really stuffy nose. So I don’t count. Hoang, who loves nuoc mam, hated this dish and declared it banned from our repertoire forever.

30 minutes total
Would make it again? No

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Page 236

Crispy Skin Salmon Fillets with Chimichurri Sauce (South America)

I absolutely loved this preparation of a regular ol’ salmon fillet. Heat some oil up til it smokes, fry up your fish, skin side down, for a minute, then blast it in to oven at 500 degrees for about 8 minutes. The simple chimichurri sauce worked well and the skin was delicious. We took Bittman’s advice and served it with the Peasant-Style Potatoes which you can find on page 475 in Vegetables.

20 minutes total
Would make it again? Yes

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Page 240

Red Snapper Meuniere (France)

You can make this super simple fish preparation with any firm white fish. Snapper, Haddock, sea bass, grouper… Just cornmeal it and fry it and drizzle it with some clarified butter. Wonderful.

20 minutes total
Would make it again? Yes

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Page 241

Catfish in saffron sauce (Spain)

A very simple dish for any firm, fleshy fish (snapper, sea bass, wolf fish…) that Hoang made. We added the potatoes to the red peppers as the recipe suggests and I recommend it. (The sautéed spinach and toasted pine nuts are a Hoang addition.) A bit on the bland side, but still very good.

40 minutes total
Would make it again? Yes

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