a foretaste of things to come: tomorrow, I'll be writing about what pushed me over the top and finally convinced me that I hate Martha Stewart. I'm sure you'll ALL be tuned in for that one.
But today, a topic that is rather dear to my heart, harking back to what I wrote when I talked about stuffed black sea bass, and that is the seasonality of fish. Just a review, for those who's minds are as porous as mine, fish, like anything else, has a season. There are fish that are characteristic of spring, there are summer fish, fall fish, and so forth. Again, since many of us buy our fish from stores that are dedicated to fish, and only fish, we lose the sense of what is "here, now." The stores I'm speaking of, generally, have glorious product. The means for getting fish from one place to another have improved dramatically, and the quality of fish is high. Still, I have a recommendation for when you go to a fishmarket: unless you're locked into a particular item, ask the guy (or gal) behind the counter what they would eat for dinner that night. That's a really good way to make sure you're getting what's freshest and best. You DO have to be ready to be confronted with something that may not appeal to you immediately, or something you don't know how to cook. On the second, if you're intrigued, ask the vendor what s/he would plan to do with the fish. I bet you'll make a good friend, you'll get a good dish, and the next time you go back to the store, s/he will remember you. Trust me on that. And that's the way you build up good relationships with vendors, and wind up getting the better pieces
So, where am I going with this entry, since I shop at farmers markets for fish? I was getting to that . I'm getting to STRIPED BASS. Now, this is a fish that has an interesting story, and is moving toward a happy ending. There was a time, not that long ago, when we were all advised not to fish and not to eat striped bass. "Stripers" as they are called, spend part of their lives in rivers. The Hudson River was so polluted with toxins, that the levels of things like PCBs and PCVs in the fish were alarmingly high. Stripers have a high fat content, and all of this stuff is fat soluble, so there it stayed. Yes, it did impact their reproductive rates, and many other things, and ultimately, the fish was deemed too toxic to eat.
Stripers have such an important role in American culture though, that this got people to act (had it been squid, betcha nothing would have happened). Stripers are a great angling fish, and those fishermen, who could fish but couldn't take the fish home, were ticked, big time. And it was a very sad commentary on how we were treating our environment.
Cleanup started and to cut the story short, the fish responded. We went from don't eat, to pregnant women limiting their consumption of the fish, to eat what you like, in season. And there IS a season. I believe that in NY, the fish can be caught, wild , from July 1 to November 15. And this is an important thing to keep in mind if you eat it in a restaurant. If they are touting "local striped bass," and it's after November 15, either they are serving something that was frozen, or they are lying. Please note that I am leaving out farmed striped bass, which is available all year long. Put the farmed, and the wild fish next to each other on a plate, and taste, and you will know the difference, immediately. The farmed stuff is more tender, and far less flavorful than the wild stuff. "Fish for people who don't like fish," is how someone described it to me, and I agree.
So, we had some last night, and I have standard ways of cooking it, but I was looking for somethine new. Nothing was really catching my eye, until I found a recipe from Marcella Hazan. Italy does not have striped bass, but they have their own branzini and other fish, which are similar, and I'm sure that Marcella, who has lived here in the US for many years, adopted to what she had: while she might have preferred an Italian fish, that fish had to come... FROM ITALY. The striped bass, however, was fresh.
What is intriguing to me about this recipe is how it combines starch and protein in one dish, something not all that common in Italian cooking. What is also intriguing to me is the very heavy use of herbs. You KNOW they're there at the end, but they're not overpowering.
The recipe takes a while to make - just about 40 minutes, but it's incredibly relaxing and easy to do. I recommend this highly.
First, you need potatoes. Marcella suggested new potatoes, but I had russets, and they were just fine. In fact, I think they may have been better than the new potatoes would have been. I peeled, and sliced the potatoes. Russets are big: I needed a pound , and two were plenty. I sliced them into big thick slices - about eight from each potato. Then, what you do is put two tablespoons of olive oil in baking dish, toss in the potatoes, and add some salt and pepper. Toss them. Then put two big sprigs of rosemary on top (if you didn't have rosemary, use thyme. I think you could use parsely too. Sage would probably be too strong, but I bet basil would be nice). Add four peeled garlic cloves. Put all of this in a preheated, 400 degree oven, and let it bake for 15 minutes. At the end of the fifteen minutes, all you do is take the dish out, and turn the potatoes so that the uncooked, top is on the bottom, and vice versa. Let these cook for ten minutes.
Now, during that second bake, get your fish ready: about a pound and a half, to two pounds (depending on how many people are eating). Dry the filets of striped bass (although I think you could probably use a whole one too, you'd just have to cook it longer), and take the baking dish out of the oven. Push the potatoes to the side, and put the fish down in the same baking dish. Salt it and add some pepper, and then take four sprigs of rosemary and pull off the needles. Cover the fish with this, and then add two more tablespoons of olive oil over the fish. Finally, sprinkle it with two tablespoons of breadcrumbs. Put it all back in the oven, for fifteen minutes.
After that's done, take it out and let it rest for about five minutes. The fish should be firm, but soft enough to cut easily, and serve it with some of the potatoes and the garlic. Brush off the rosemary if it bothers you.
Guy and I enjoyed this dish so much, that we're probably going to try it again. And I will say this: the potatoes were good enough to make without the fish. So, you can add a new potato dish to your repertoire, as well as a complete meal with the fish.
You don't HAVE to use striped bass here. I think anything firm, and toward the mild side, would work. Cod would be good, or black sea bass if you can still get some. Pollak would work too. If you can't get something seasonal, I think this may be a way to make mahi mahi taste good, or even snapper. I would stay away from the fattier, more muscular fishes like tuna and swordfish, and the softer ones like flounder and fluke, as well as salmon. I'm not quite sure about bluefish and mackerel, to tell you the truth. Serving these, cold, with potatoes, is fairly standard in cooking and I can imagine that they'd be good, especially with the rosemary cutting through the fattiness. They are not my favorite fish, so I can't really speak to them. But they are species that are widely available, and inexpensive. Key with them: get them fresh.
So, you have a multitude of possibilities here. If you are afraid of fish cooking, this one is nice and easy, and I think you could do it, even if it's your first foray into fish cooking. Give it a try, and let me know. Of course, I wanna hear
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