potatoes
Keys To SUCCESS
A SPOONFUL of tomato paste added to the browned vegetables provides smoothness, body, and color; it’s entirely optional.
IT’S BEST to remove the thin membrane clinging to the monkfish before cooking. Just pull and tug on it while cutting through it with a paring knife and it will come off; you don’t have to be too compulsive about this task, but try to get most of it off.
LARGE PIECES of monkfish—those weighing more than a pound—should be split down the middle lengthwise to make two fillets before cooking.
FINALLY, UNLIKE most white-fleshed fish, monkfish requires thorough cooking, to the point where it is opaque and tender throughout. You’ll know it’s done
when a thin-bladed knife inserted into the thickest part meets little resistance.
THE STURDY texture of monkfish is ideal for roasting, but certain other fillets will give similar results: red snapper, sea bass, pollock, wolffish, even catfish. And even more delicate fillets, from cod to bluefish, are suitable.
With MINIMAL Effort
Roast Monkfish with Asian Meat Sauce: To season the stock with Asian aromatic vegetables rather than traditional European ones, substitute 10 slices ginger, a stalk of lemongrass, and 5 scallions for the carrot, celery, and onion. Omit the tomato paste.
| This will work with almost any meaty, white-fleshed fish, like halibut, catfish, striped bass, or sea bass. If you’re careful not to overroast, it is also nice with more delicate fish, such as cod and haddock.
Fish Simmered
in Spicy Soy Sauce
TIME: 20 minutes
MAKES: 4 servings
Good soy sauce makes a fine and instant poaching liquid, to which you can a variety of simple seasonings—here I use scallions and chile. Simmered in this, the fish gains not only the flavor of soy but a beautiful mahogany color. The dish can be garnished with the cooked scallions, and the poaching liquid—slightly reduced, but now enhanced by the flavor of the fish—makes a wonderful dressing for rice.
⅓ to ½ cup good soy sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
About 15 scallions, trimmed and cut into 2-inch lengths, or 1 large onion, sliced
1 dried or fresh chile, optional
One ½-pound striped bass fillet, preferably a center cut
Combine the soy, ½ to 1 cup water, sugar, scallions, and optional chile in a deep skillet just large enough to hold the fish. Turn the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.
Add the fish and adjust the heat so the mixture bubbles but not furiously. Cook for about 10 minutes, turning the fish once or twice, until it is coated with a brown glaze and cooked through. Serve the fish with white rice, spooning the sauce over all and garnishing with the scallions.
WINE
Cold sake, beer, or Champagne
SERVE WITH
Easy Rice or Crisp Pan-fried Noodle Cake; Steamed Broccoli (or Other Vegetable)
Keys To SUCCESS
THERE IS a judgment to make here, and it can only be determined by tasting the soy sauce you’re about to use. If it is mild, almost sweet—the kind you would happily use as a plain dip for sushi—you can dilute it with an equal amount of water. But if it is strong and highly salty, use 2 parts water to 1 part soy.
STRIPED BASS is meaty and flavorful, but you can use this preparation for cod, (undercook it slightly or it will fall apart), monkfish (cook a little longer to ensure tenderness), salmon, red snapper, sea bass, halibut, swordfish, or even sea scallops (which should be cooked for only 3 or 4 minutes). No matter which fish you choose, try to get a piece that is equally thick at both ends—this is easiest if you get a cut from the center of a large fillet—or the thin end will be overcooked before the thick end is done. The other alternative is to buy fish steaks, like salmon, swordfish, or halibut.
With MINIMAL Effort
Fish and Shallots Simmered in Spicy Soy Sauce: Peel and halve 10 to 15 shallots and use in place of the scallions to produce a more substantial dish. Chopped leeks are also a good option.
| Add a tablespoon
Keys To SUCCESS
A SPOONFUL of tomato paste added to the browned vegetables provides smoothness, body, and color; it’s entirely optional.
IT’S BEST to remove the thin membrane clinging to the monkfish before cooking. Just pull and tug on it while cutting through it with a paring knife and it will come off; you don’t have to be too compulsive about this task, but try to get most of it off.
LARGE PIECES of monkfish—those weighing more than a pound—should be split down the middle lengthwise to make two fillets before cooking.
FINALLY, UNLIKE most white-fleshed fish, monkfish requires thorough cooking, to the point where it is opaque and tender throughout. You’ll know it’s done
when a thin-bladed knife inserted into the thickest part meets little resistance.
THE STURDY texture of monkfish is ideal for roasting, but certain other fillets will give similar results: red snapper, sea bass, pollock, wolffish, even catfish. And even more delicate fillets, from cod to bluefish, are suitable.
With MINIMAL Effort
Roast Monkfish with Asian Meat Sauce: To season the stock with Asian aromatic vegetables rather than traditional European ones, substitute 10 slices ginger, a stalk of lemongrass, and 5 scallions for the carrot, celery, and onion. Omit the tomato paste.
| This will work with almost any meaty, white-fleshed fish, like halibut, catfish, striped bass, or sea bass. If you’re careful not to overroast, it is also nice with more delicate fish, such as cod and haddock.
Fish Simmered
in Spicy Soy Sauce
TIME: 20 minutes
MAKES: 4 servings
Good soy sauce makes a fine and instant poaching liquid, to which you can a variety of simple seasonings—here I use scallions and chile. Simmered in this, the fish gains not only the flavor of soy but a beautiful mahogany color. The dish can be garnished with the cooked scallions, and the poaching liquid—slightly reduced, but now enhanced by the flavor of the fish—makes a wonderful dressing for rice.
⅓ to ½ cup good soy sauce
2 teaspoons sugar
About 15 scallions, trimmed and cut into 2-inch lengths, or 1 large onion, sliced
1 dried or fresh chile, optional
One ½-pound striped bass fillet, preferably a center cut
Combine the soy, ½ to 1 cup water, sugar, scallions, and optional chile in a deep skillet just large enough to hold the fish. Turn the heat to medium-high and bring to a boil.
Add the fish and adjust the heat so the mixture bubbles but not furiously. Cook for about 10 minutes, turning the fish once or twice, until it is coated with a brown glaze and cooked through. Serve the fish with white rice, spooning the sauce over all and garnishing with the scallions.
WINE
Cold sake, beer, or Champagne
SERVE WITH
Easy Rice or Crisp Pan-fried Noodle Cake; Steamed Broccoli (or Other Vegetable)
Keys To SUCCESS
THERE IS a judgment to make here, and it can only be determined by tasting the soy sauce you’re about to use. If it is mild, almost sweet—the kind you would happily use as a plain dip for sushi—you can dilute it with an equal amount of water. But if it is strong and highly salty, use 2 parts water to 1 part soy.
STRIPED BASS is meaty and flavorful, but you can use this preparation for cod, (undercook it slightly or it will fall apart), monkfish (cook a little longer to ensure tenderness), salmon, red snapper, sea bass, halibut, swordfish, or even sea scallops (which should be cooked for only 3 or 4 minutes). No matter which fish you choose, try to get a piece that is equally thick at both ends—this is easiest if you get a cut from the center of a large fillet—or the thin end will be overcooked before the thick end is done. The other alternative is to buy fish steaks, like salmon, swordfish, or halibut.
With MINIMAL Effort
Fish and Shallots Simmered in Spicy Soy Sauce: Peel and halve 10 to 15 shallots and use in place of the scallions to produce a more substantial dish. Chopped leeks are also a good option.
| Add a tablespoon
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