Category Archives: Fish and Seafood

February 28, 2009 · 11:30 pm

Whole Roasted Daurade a la Provencale

Daurade Roti at Cafe du Soleil - Photo by Philippe Touitou

Daurade Roti at Cafe du Soleil - Photo by Philippe Touitou

 

I love roasting fish whole. The preparation is simple and the results outweigh the minimal effort. You just need to have a willing audience – willing to stare their dinner in the eye, and willing to tackle the bones as they eat.

It’s relatively easy to find whole fish at most fish markets. Ask them to scale the fish for you, trim the fins and tail, and remove the gills. This dish will work well with many kinds of fish. Pictured is a Daurade (Sea Bream) imported from the Mediterranean. These fish have become more common in recent years with the rise in aquaculture. They are farm raised in Greece and shipped here quickly so they are usually very reliably fresh. Another excellent imported farm-raised fish is the Branzino which is a Mediterranean Sea Bass.

Other fish to try are Red Snapper, Black Sea Bass, Farm-Raised Striped Bass, and Domestic Sea Bream, also known as Porgies.

The preparation is the same for all. Season the fish inside and out with salt and pepper, and a light drizzle of Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Stuff the cavity with fresh or dried herbs (I like thyme and fresh bay leaves if you can find them) and slices of lemon and tomato. Place on an oiled baking sheet or baking dish, and roast in the oven at 400F for about 10 to 15 minutes.

The best way to tell if it’s done is an old trick I learned in restaurants over the years – you pull on the finbone closest to the head of the fish. You should just barely be able to pull it away from the flesh. This makes alot of sense since if you can’t pull it away it means the flesh is still raw at that point (try pulling a bone from a raw fish and you’ll see what I mean), and if you can pull it away too easily it means the resistance is gone and it’s overcooked.

Drizzle the fish with some more EVOO and you’re ready to serve. You don’t really need a sauce with this, but here are a couple suggestions:

When you remove the fish from the oven and transfer it to your serving dish, pour a little white or rose wine into the baking dish, place it on a burner, and scrape up any bits that may have stuck to the dish while letting the wine reduce a little. Add a knob of butter if desired and serve on the side or pour over the fish.

Alternately you could prepare a light beurre blanc (see my beurre blanc post of March 15, 2008 for a recipe) and flavor it with capers and lemon, or whatever else strikes your fancy.

Also in the photo you can see a lovely row of baked Provencale Vegetables on the platter with the Daurade. This makes an excellent accompaniment. Rather than give an exact recipe I’ll just describe how they’re made:

Saute some sliced onions and red peppers in olive oil, season with salt and pepper and chopped garlic to tatse, and spread over the bottom of a baking dish. Slice zucchini, yellow squash, tomato, and eggplant into uniform slices, then layer (alternating the colors) on top of the pepper onion mixture. Season the whole with salt and pepper, drizzle generously with EVOO, and add some chopped fresh thyme. Cover with foil, and bake at 350F for about 20 to 30 minutes, until the vegetables are soft. Uncover the foil and bake another 10 minutes or so until they are slightly browned on top.

 

I hope you’ll try these dishes – and if you do, I hope you enjoy them. Comments and feedback are always welcome.

Bon Appetit!

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August 23, 2008 · 2:41 pm

Lobster Ravioli with Truffle Sauce

 

Today’s post is definitely more complicated and time consuming than what I usually present here. PLEASE DONT GET SCARED OFF.  In the video I’ll show you how to make the raviolis themselves, how to cook them, and then finish the sauce. The video was filmed by my friend Collin Siemer who was visiting from London. I first met Collin when I did five episodes of the Chef du Jour show on Food Network back in 2000. Collin was the producer for those shows and we have remained great friends ever since. So I thought it would be fun to have him jump in and recreate one of the dishes I did on that show. Thank you Collin!!

I am presenting the recipe as I make it in the restaurant where I have lots of hands to help with labor. For those of you that want to recreate that dish you have the template. But I bet most of you will take some shorcuts to make it more manageable. You can find my suggestions below the recipe.

And even if you dont want to make your own raviolis you MUST try making the sauce – it would be great with even the most basic store-bought raviolis! One more suggestion: Try involving your dinner guests in the making of the raviolis. It can be a great pre-dinner group activity for your guests. And it’s relatively unmessy if you use the gyoza skins because you dont need flour all over your workbench.

The recipe is on the Food Network website and there is a link to that page in the section of my blog titled “Links to My Recipes on the Web”. But I am reposting it below so you can refer to the original recipe when deciding which substitutions to make.

 

 

Raviolis of Maine Lobster with White Truffle Sauce

 Yield – about 32 raviolis which can serve 8 as an appetizer or 6 as a main course

 
 
Filling:
2 live lobsters, 1 pound each
1 teaspoon chopped fresh tarragon
Lobster Stock:
Lobster shells from above
1 carrot
1 stalk celery
1 small onion, peeled
2 tablespoons tomato paste
2 cloves garlic, peeled
Water to cover
Truffle Sauce:
1/2 cup white wine
1 cup chicken stock
2 cups heavy cream
2 ounces white truffle butter
Dash lemon juice
Dash hot pepper sauce
Dash Worcestershire sauce
Salt and pepper to taste
Egg wash:
1 egg white, lightly beaten
Pasta:
4 sheets fresh pasta, 18 inches by 24 inches or 1 package wonton wrappersor gyozo skins

Garnish:
Sauteed shrimp (optional)
1 tablespoon chives, chopped
 
Method:
To Cook the Lobsters and Make the Lobster Stock:
Boil lobsters in lightly salted boiling water for 10 to 12 minutes. Remove and cool in cold water. Remove meat from shells and chop into small diced pieces, set aside. Rinse the lobster bodies (from above) under running water to remove the green tomalley. Combine with the vegetables, tomato paste, and garlic in a small stock pot. Cover with cold water (just enough to cover shells and vegetables). Bring to a boil, then simmer for 2 hours. When done, strain, then reduce over medium high heat until thick and dark (watch it carefully, as you get near the end). You should have about 1/2 cup liquid. Set aside.
To Make the Truffle Sauce:
While the stock is reducing, prepare the truffle sauce. Heat the wine and chicken stock together. Bring to a boil, then reduce until almost dry (about 1/4 cup). Add heavy cream, reduce by 1/2 then add the truffle butter with a whisk until well incorporated. Finish with a dash of lemon juice, Worcestershire sauce, hot pepper sauce and salt and pepper. Keep warm until ready to use.
Filling:
Combine the chopped lobster meat, the tarragon and the reduced lobster stock. Mix well, add salt and pepper to taste.
To Make the Raviolis:
Blend together the egg yolk and milk for the eggwash. Lay out the pasta sheets and brush with the egg white. If using the fresh pasta sheets divide the lobster filling evenly into 32 parts and place it onto the sheets in rows 6 inches long by 3 inches wide, to make 32 pieces. If using the gyoza skins do the same procedure one by one. Cut with a round or scalloped edge cutter and place on a tray covered with parchment paper and dusted with cornmeal. Pinch the edges of the ravioli together to seal them well or you can use a ravioli tray to make them. You can make the raviolis ahead of time and freeze them, or use them fresh.


To Finish the Dish:
Cook the raviolis in boiling, lightly salted water, about 3-5 minutes if using fresh pasta, less if using wonton or gyoza wrappers, until pasta is al dente. While the pasta is cooking saute your shrimp if using. When pasta is done drain and toss with the truffle sauce, serve in bowls, and garnish with optional shrimp and a sprinkle of chopped chives. Parmesan cheese is not recommended for this dish as it interferes with the flavor of the sauce.
Substitutions and Short Cuts:
You can fill these raviolis with any shellfish you like - seared scallops, sauteed shrimp, crayfish are all good additions or substitutions (or use chopped broiled fish, or chopped sauteed mushrooms, or whatever else you can think of). Just be sure to chop them finely and moisten them with stock or a thick liquid.
If you dont want to make lobster stock you can substitute tomato sauce or reduced fish stock thickened with a little tomato paste. or you could use melted butter to moisten the filling.
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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June 18, 2008 · 9:43 pm

Fresh Herb Oils and Tuna Tartare

Fresh Herb Oils can add a professional flourish to many dishes. They are quite different from herb-infused oils. Here, the herbs are pureed with the oil, resulting in a very intense herb flavor and a beautiful emerald green color. I usually use one herb at a time in these recipes to keep the flavors clean. But feel free to try combining different herbs together to create new combinations. Try using herb oil in a vinaigrette or as a marinade, or try drizzling some over grilled fish or chicken breast. Herb oils are handy cold-pantry staples as they keep well in the refirgerator for a few weeks. Chive Oil is my favorite.

I’ll start with the Basic Ratio Formula, then give you a full recipe for Chive Oil, then a recipe for Tuna Tartare.

Basic Ratio by Volume:

2 Parts Fresh herbs such as basil, chives, tarragon, parsley, dill

1 Part Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Salt to taste

 

Chive Oil:     Yield: 1 cup

Ingredients:

2/3 cup Fresh Chives, lightly packed

1/3 cup Extra Virgin Olive Oil

Pinch Salt

 

Method:

Wash Chives and pat dry with a towel. Cut into 1-2″ pieces.

Puree in blender with olive oil and salt. Optional: Strain through fine mesh strainer.

 

Now here’s a recipe using your freshly made Chive Oil. It makes a great dinner appetizer or lunch main course. Of course when serving raw fish you need to buy the best quality sushi-grade tuna you can find. I also love serving this tartare on potato chips as an hors d’oeuvre for a cocktail party. In this recipe the chips are a garnish that your guests can use to pile the tartare onto. Either way – it’s really delicious and easy to make.

Blue-Fin Tuna Tartare     Yield: 4 servings

Ingredients:

1/2 lb. Sushi-grade BlueFin tuna, cut in2 1/4″ cubes or smaller

4T Chive Oil

2T Extra Virgin Olive Oil

1 Shallot, finely chopped

1 T. Chives, finely chopped

1 t Lemon zest, grated

Salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

32 Potato Chips (best-quality store-bought, or homemade waffle chips)

Optional garnish; Baby salad greens

 

Method:

Mix tuna with half the chive oil, olive oil, shallot, chive, lemon zest, salt and pepper in a small mixing bowl.

Divide evenly onto four appetizer plates in a pleasing shape (I use a 3″ ring mold).

Place 8 potato chips standing upright into the tartare. garnish with a few leaves of baby salad greens if desired, and drizzle the remaining chive oil around inside edge of each plate.

 

ENJOY!!!

 

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December 15, 2007 · 10:21 pm

Linguine with Grilled Shrimp, Part 3

linguine-small.jpg

Linguine with Grilled Shrimp, Part 3

So far, so good, right?   

You have made your Marinara sauce.

You have made your Garlic Herb Butter and rolled it into a log shape to store it.

Now comes the time to put it all together!! So, following along the Italian flag theme, we have our red and our green stripes.  

Now comes The White Stripe:  

That’s just a white sauce that can be made in one of three ways depending on your sensibilities. The first, and simplest, is just to boil some heavy cream (use about ¼ cup per person – and let it reduce by half until slightly thickened).

You will be tossing the cooked linguine into this sauce when plating your dish. (Please scroll down to the end of this post for the other two alternatives). 

Finishing the Garlic Herb Butter Sauce: 

No matter which of the versions of white sauce you will be using to toss the pasta in, you need to finish the garlic herb sauce as follows: Heat up some heavy cream in a saucepan, and then whisk the garlic herb butter into the cream. For 4 servings use about ¼ cup cream plus about ½ cup of the garlic herb butter. 

The Shrimp: Use the biggest and freshest your budget will allow.  Peel and devein them (leaving the tail shell on). Toss them with a marinade of chopped fresh garlic and herbs if you want a little extra flavor (let them sit about an hour, or even just a few minutes). Season them with some salt and pepper. Grill them if you have a grill handy, or just sauté them. Either way, after cooking, keep them warm (but not over direct heat) in the Garlic Herb Butter Sauce.  

Cooking the Pasta: 

Of course while the shrimp are cooking you need to cook your linguine. How much pasta is up to you but the general rule of thumb is 4 servings per pound of pasta. For this dish I would plan on getting 6 servings per pound because it is fairly rich. Remember to use a large pot with plenty of water when cooking pasta. It needs room to move around a little.

Also, be sure to add salt to the water – it should taste slightly salty. And cook it to the doneness that you like, but remember that “al dente” doesn’t mean that it gets stuck in your teeth when you eat it! 

To Assemble the Dish: 

Heat your Marinara sauce and keep warm. Reduce your heavy cream or heat your white sauce if you haven’t already done so). Toss the linguine in the white sauce. At the restaurant we twist the linguine into a tube shape with a large kitchen fork and place it on each plate.

Remove the shrimp from the sauce and place them on top of cooked linguine. Spoon a ribbon of each sauce on the plate as indicated in the photo at the top of the page (click on it for a larger view) using the rest of the garlic herb sauce in the pan for the green stripe. 

 

  Weekday Dinner Alternate Presentation: You could also do a much simpler dish for a weekday dinner by just tossing your pasta with your Marinara sauce then spooning the shrimp over the pasta followed by the remaining garlic herb sauce. You can skip the cream sauce entirely for this presentation.  

 

Either way, it’s a delicious dish, and I hope you will try it and let me know how you liked it. Please also comment if any part of the recipe is unclear.  

 

Remember, The Chef’s Got Your Back.  

* As Promised – White Sauce Alternatives: 

1)   Simple white sauce – I make it using whole milk thickened with a roux (equal parts flour and melted butter – you need about 1T. roux per 2 cups of milk – or until it’s about the consistency of heavy cream).   

2)  Lower Fat White Sauce – use cornstarch (diluted with just enough water to make it pourable) which you whisk into boiling 2% or nonfat milk (use the same ratio as for roux – about 1T. per 2 cups of milk). That will give you the feeling of eating a creamy sauce without the calories.    

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December 8, 2007 · 5:19 pm

Linguine with Grilled Shrimp Part 2

linguine-small.jpg

Last week, Dear Reader, I left you hanging by a thin strand of linguine waiting in suspense for the next installment of our recipe.

Well wait no longer! 

You have made your marinara sauce. You have stored it in the refrigerator ready to use. 

Remember that we are making the three colors of the Italian flag for this dish – so now for the green stripe. 

Linguine with Grilled Shrimp in Garlic Herb Butter: Part 2 

This is the real recipe star — garlic herb butter (in the pro kitchens we often call it “escargot butter” because it’s what we use to make those delicious baked Escargots de Bourgogne – the ones swimming in this delicious butter).  

This is another ratio recipe for you: 

Escargot Butter 

1 part Shallots, peeled and chopped

1 part Garlic, peeled and chopped

1 part Parsley, peeled and chopped

For 1 # Unsalted Butter (softened) use 1/3 cup of each item listed above. I do suggest you make this recipe with a pound of butter. You will find that you can use it in many different dishes so it’s great to have it on hand in the freezer.  

Method:

Chop the shallots, garlic, and parsley separately in the food processor, then combine (you don’t have to wash the bowl of the machine in between). Then you add your softened butter, puree until combined well, add salt to taste and you’re done!

It’s best to do this ahead of time then store in the refrigerator or freezer. I usually roll it in a log shape and wrap it in plastic wrap. See you in a few days for the last installment of our recipe, where our fearless hero shows you how to cook the pasta, grill the shrimp, and put it all together for a show-stopping creation! 

Remember, The Chef’s Got Your Back. 

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November 29, 2007 · 10:13 pm

Linguine with Grilled Shrimp Part 1

 

linguine-small.jpg 

For this week’s blog I want to present a restaurant dish and give you some variations on how you can simplify it for home cooking.

This post will be in three parts over the next week so you will have plenty of time to plan ahead to make this dish for your next dinner party. 

We’ll start with one of the most popular dishes at Café du Soleil: 

Linguine with Grilled Shrimp in Garlic Herb Butter. 

Let’s start with the fancy restaurant-style presentation. This dish is designed to look like an Italian flag, with red, green and white sauces in stripes. That may seem like a lot to do but it’s not so complicated. I’ll break it down for you and you can decide. 

Part 1 – Marinara Sauce

Ingredients :

Base Ingredient:        

1 can (14.5 oz) plum tomatoes (preferably Italian)

Aromatic Vegetables:                   

1 medium yellow onion, chopped
1T. garlic, chopped

Seasonings:                                 

1T. each dried oregano and basil
add a few red pepper flakes to spice it up if you want

Method:

1. Sautée the onions and garlic in a couple Tbsps. of olive oil until soft
2. Add the tomatoes and seasonings and a few sprigs of fresh basil
3. Simmer about 30 – 45 minutes plus salt and pepper to taste
4. Pass through a food mill (my preference
for optimum texture) or food processor and puree

Chef’s Secret: I put in a little sugar just to sweeten it up a little, and some tomato paste to give it a little more color and flavor.

Chef’s Secret: I also like to add a little red wine to my marinara – anything leftover from last night’s bottle is fine
 

Chef’s Secret: I also like to add a little fresh pork to give it a little more body – you could use a small
  piece of pork shoulder, or any cut with some meat and some bone to give flavor –
  remove it before pureeing and it makes a nice little snack for the cook.

Simpler Method: If you want to use your favorite jarred version that would be a no-brainer way to simplify.
  I like to freshen up a jar of commercial sauce by pureeing in a couple fresh plum tomatoes,
  and if you’ve got some fresh basil on hand, toss that in too.

So far, so good.   

See you again in a few days for Part 2.

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