Fish question

I like fish, but am only familiar with haddock (usually battered and fried), salmon, swordfish, perch, trout and yellow pike. However, for NiagarCOOL I purchased a 10 lb. box of frozen red snapper fillets and a 10 lb. box of ocean perch fillets. Due to limited turnout, I only cooked part of the perch and none of the red snapper. Athough partially thawed, I returned them to my freezer and have been eating the rest of the perch (sealed in portion sized bags) for evening dinners, pan fried with butter, dill, lemon, etc. (and a glass or two of Riesling, of course). However, I've never cooked red snapper. Any suggestions?

You could poach it in salsa, a la Vera Cruz.

Onions, tomatoes, cilantro, salt, pepper, garlic, some serrano or jalapeno chiles, get it all going in a saute pan and then just lay the filets on top, and spoon the mixture over them during cooking.

You could also do them piccata style, with lemon, butter and capers.

You can cook Red Snapper just like Redfish (Red Drum), which is a Louisiana favorite -- Blackened Redfish.

There are a million recipes -- might even find one in that old fart's cookbook who hangs around here.

1 lb. redfish or red snapper fillets
3 Tbsp butter, melted
1 Tbsp Pepper Mixture

Pepper Mixture:

1 Tbs onion powder
1 Tbs garlic powder
1 Tbs dried thyme, crushed
1 Tbs ground white pepper
1 Tbs ground red (cayenne) pepper
1 Tbs ground black pepper
1 Tbs Hungarian paprika
½ Tbs salt
Some recipes also use basil and oregano

Preparation:

Prepare pepper mixture, combining all ingredients. Brush fish with melted butter and coat fillets on both sides with pepper mixture. Place a cast iron skillet directly over a hot burner. Heat for several minutes or until a drop of water vaporizes in skillet. Add fish to skillet, thickest pieces first. Drizzle with the remaining butter. Cook, uncovered, 2-3 minutes per side for ½ to ¾ inch fillets, or 3-4 minutes for 1 inch thick fillets. It gets smoky, so have good ventilation.

You can store the pepper mixture in a small Tupperware container for future use.

I resemble that remark! And, yes, there are several in *both* books which would work quite well.

I think I'll give this a try, but I'm going to be too busy to do any serious cooking for a few weeks, so I'll report back when I do. BTW - is a Red Drum similar to a Freshwater Drum, also called Sheephead and common to the Great Lakes?

You could poach it in salsa, a la Vera Cruz.

Onions, tomatoes, cilantro, salt, pepper, garlic, some serrano or jalapeno chiles, get it all going in a saute pan and then just lay the filets on top, and spoon the mixture over them during cooking.

You could also do them piccata style, with lemon, butter and capers.

John,

That just sounds seriously good!

... is a Red Drum similar to a Freshwater Drum

I don't think so, but I'm no fish expert. I know we considered drum to be scrap fish in Oklahoma and threw them back.

I know we considered drum to be scrap fish in Oklahoma and threw them back.

Well, thats what we do with Sheephead too.

Technical term is "trash" fish. What is a trash fish?

Any fish for which a maket and palate have not yet been developed. These change quite a bit over the years.

I attended a very interesting seminar years ago put on by the Florida Dept of Fish and Game. That was what the entire seminar was about. This was a meeting of local Amercan Culinary Federation presidents from all over the country, so we had quite a few questions.

One man's trash is another's treasure.

That's the word I meant -- trash fish. Hear what I mean, not what I say, you old coot.

You could poach it in salsa, a la Vera Cruz.

You could also do them piccata style, with lemon, butter and capers.

%^)

Hey John !

Kathleen and I do your "piccata style" a lot ... but my favorite way to eat red snapper is as "fish and chips" ... correct me if I'm wrong but isn't most of the "fish and chips" in Morro Bay and along the Central California coast red snapper ? I know that's what they tell us at The Fish Bowl ... it sure is juicy and tender ! And a $10 bottle of Firestone chardonnay to go with it ain't bad either !

Clink !

%^)

That's the word I meant -- trash fish. Hear what I mean, not what I say, you old coot.

Ah, yes, I remember fondly the days when I was a young coot...

A standard oven bake for us is lime juice and zest, with finely chopped peppers (red , yellow or orange work well for colour), finely chopped or grated ginger and usually finely chopped red onion. Other stuff can go in as required, but bright colours tends to be the theme.

Cover with foil and bake for 10-30 minutes depending on the size of the fish.

regards

Ian

You can use snapper in almost any recipe calling for mild white fish. Here is one I've used several times.

Baked Snapper with Chipotle Butter

½ tsp. ground cumin
½ tsp. paprika
¼ tsp. salt
1/8 tsp. black pepper
4 6-oz. red snapper filets (or other whitefish filets)
Cooking spray
1 Tb. butter, softened
1 canned chipotle chile pepper in adobo sauce, finely minced
Lemon wedges

Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Combine first 4 ingredients, sprinkle evenly over fish. Place fish on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray, bake 15 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork. While fish bakes, combine butter and chile pepper. Spread butter mixture evenly over fish. Serve with lemon wedges.

- Cooking Light Magazine – May 2003

... is a Red Drum similar to a Freshwater Drum

I don't think so, but I'm no fish expert. I know we considered drum to be scrap fish in Oklahoma and threw them back.

My cousin lived in Slidell, Louisiana. He moaned that redfish was at one time a pretty cheap fish. Then us Yankees discovered blackened redfish and the price jumped enormously! He wasnt interested in my counter that it was one of his local boys, Paul Prudhomme, that made blackened redfish so popular.

Like Chef Carey said, trash fish changes.

... is a Red Drum similar to a Freshwater Drum

I don't think so, but I'm no fish expert. I know we considered drum to be scrap fish in Oklahoma and threw them back.

My cousin lived in Slidell, Louisiana. He moaned that redfish was at one time a pretty cheap fish. Then us Yankees discovered blackened redfish and the price jumped enormously! He wasnt interested in my counter that it was one of his local boys, Paul Prudhomme, that made blackened redfish so popular.

Like Chef Carey said, trash fish changes.

Lobsters used to be trash "fish." In fact, they were as plentiful as cockroaches and they used to grind them up for fertilizer. They were for poor folks to eat. Ahh, for at least this one facet of the good ol' days.