Beating the system: crab stuffed fish

What does she mean, "beating the system?"   Well, as always, Annalena shall explain.

You know the experience of going into a store, be it fancy, or pretend fancy, and you see something that REALLY looks tasty.  And it's outrageously expensive.  But you buy it, because you're hungry, or you think that it will taste good, etc, etc, etc.

Then you get the stuff home and you cook it.  And you think  "good, but...."

Can Annalena see a show of hands of people to whom this has happened?  It's happened to her.  So she knows it happened to you.

One of the items that falls under this category, without question is crab stuffed fish.  Yes, you've seen it, haven't you?  Maybe you've taken it home.    Well, here is an ingredient list of one such product, taken from one of Annalena's on-line purveyors:

Sole, Crab Meat (With Sodium Acid Phosphate [To Keep Color]), Mayonnaise (Soybean Oil, Water, Egg, Egg Yolk, Vinegar, Salt, Sugar, Lemon Juice, Natural Flavors, Calcium Disodium EDTA [Protects Quality]), Bread Crumbs (Bleached Wheat Flour, Dextrose, Yeast, Salt), Eggs, Scallions, Celery, Red Bell Pepper, Dijon Mustard (Water, Mustard Seeds, Vinegar, Salt, Citric Acid, Sulphur Dioxide [Preservative]), Chives, Jalapeno, Salt, Dill, Pepper, Old Bay Seasoning (Celery Salt [Salt, Celery Seed], Spices, Mustard). MAY CONTAIN SHELL FRAGMENTS. 


Annalena is fine with the stuff like sole, and crab, etc, but REALLY?    Do you really want all that stuff in your dinner?  And at 14.99 a pound, this is not especially cheap.    Well, Annalena heard about one of her friends buying crab stuffed salmon, and she put  her sizable foot down.  This was NOT acceptable to Annalena.  So, we had a cooking lesson last night, and we made crab stuffed fish.  And it was good.  No, it was MORE than good.  It was REALLY good.  And now, ragazzi, let's make it together.  And in the process, we will learn a technique more than just a single recipe. 

One of two constants  in this recipe, is that you need fish fillets. Get 3-4 of them.  You can use flounder, sole,  or as we did, black sea bass.  Anything that either has an edible skin, and has the skin on, or one that has been skinned.  For example, flounder skin is not really edible.  On the other hand, black sea bass, striped bass, and others, are.  (Striped bass is hard to find in the right size though).  You need pieces that are kind of like the standard flounder fillet.  And they should be between 6 and 8 ounces each, to make a single serving.

The other constant is crabmeat.  Now, crabmeat is expensive.  But get the good stuff.  You only need about a cup of it for 3-4 servings, and you're worth it.  You know you are.


Put the crabmeat in a bowl, and now, the fun begins.  You get to add stuff.  You need something crunchy.  Traditionally, this is green pepper.  Annalena did not have any peppers in the house , so she used a small rib of celery, and a scallion, both of which she chopped very fine.  The scallion also satisfies the "small onion" chopped requirement.  You do need some kind of shallot, or or onion, etc.  About 3 tablespoons worth.  Finally, Annalena adds the zest of half of a lemon.    Those are the vegetable components.  You will note, no herbs, and no salt.  She does add a scant quarter cup of mayonnaise, both to give some fat to the fish, and also to hold the crabmeat together.  


Please use this as a guide.  You can substitute various crunchy things here, and you can use herbs, and you can add a jalapeno, etc.  Just don't overdo it, because crab is delicate, and you want the taste to come through. 


Let's mix all those things together.  Now, we turn to our fish. Sprinkle each fillet with salt.  Then, on one half of the fillet, mound the crab mixture.  Start small, so you get equal amounts on each fillet, and then use up the rest.  Pile it up if you have to. 

Now, take the half that does not have the crab on it, and fold it over the mound of crab mixture.  If you want to, you can seal this closed with a toothpick.  It's not necessary, but it makes for a nicer presentation at the end.    Move these to a buttered, glass or ceramic baking dish, and get them in the oven, for 15-20 minutes.  You can tell with it's ready, by sticking a knife into the fish.  If it goes in easily, and softly, it's done. 

And know what?  You have company food here.  Crab always does seem, to Annalena, to have a sense of celebration about it.  And indeed, a good meal should ALWAYS be a celebration.  Make it.  Make your variations.  And tell us about them.  

And Annalena apologizes for this type face today.  She doesn't know what happened.  She'll fix it.  Promesso.