It is that time of year when newspapers look back on the past year’s events. For a food blog that means reviewing the culinary highlights which made the year so special. Perhaps a spectacular meal in a restaurant so sought after that it required reservations a year in advance? Or a fantastically complicated dish that took an entire month to prepare? So you might think, but, no. What really made this year special for me is that I cooked more meals than in any previous year. In fact, I often cooked even when I was away from home and I can probably count on my fingers the number of times I’ve eaten out. Call it culinary narcissism, but for a few exceptions I’ve invariably regretted it. So to celebrate this personal milestone I’m going to instead write about the easiest and tastiest dish I’ve made, if not in the past year, then in quite some time: sea bream in salsa verde.
I tend to eschew superlatives in describing recipes. But this one is nothing short of magical. It really only has two, rather humble ingredients (apart from the fish): parsley and garlic. But they come together to make a sauce–the salsa verde–that is unctuous and delicious beyond belief. The recipe is from Ferran AdriĆ ’s “The Family Meal” and, while Mr. AdriĆ is Catalan, in its simplicity this dish very much reminds me of Basque-style seafood cookery.
The original recipe calls for whiting but any firm, white fish will do. I use sea bream because it is always fresh and readily available at my local fishmonger. (A quick search reveals that it is also quite sustainable.) Whole fish (with or without the head; I cut it off so that the fish will fit in my pan and to make stock) is best and makes for a beautiful presentation. But fillets are prefectly fine (adjust the cooking time accordingly). Just make sure you have plenth of good, crusty bread on hand to soak up all the sauce!
Yield: 2 servings
Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook Time: 20 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
From The Family Meal: Home Cooking with Ferran Adrià (link)