fish of the future
Welcome to a new thematic posting series, ‘perishables.’ I’m sorry, when I impulsively renamed my personal blog “Odd Size Baggage” a few months ago I didn’t realize I would also be giving birth to a host of ridiculous airport- or shipping-related terminology. But, here we are. So anyway, as you might guess, ‘perishables’ is going to be about food and eating, and to easily encompass both those, I am going to tag these ‘yum.’
So! My first.
Peter and Conrad very thoughtfully brought me back some lime-infused olive oil from their recent trip to New Zealand. [I’d link but there were a lot of posts. Just go to his blog.] Anyway, it smells divine, and real – really like lime – so I have been thinking about how I can best use this little bottle of joy most effectively.
Here’s what I have thus far, and I welcome feedback from the many accomplished cooks [or accomplished eaters] who read this, as this is a work in progress and I haven’t made this incarnation yet. You should also know that unless I am following someone else’s recipe, I don’t measure, as such, and I start out cooking for one and then expanding (if successful in portioning) or having leftovers (if too generous – sometimes I also have dinner parties 😉 …). I started out with a much rougher draft at lunch last week and here’s my plans for improving it:
Tilapia, with a tip of the hat to Asia
lime infused oil (just enough to get going)
minced cilantro
minced garlic (at least 2 cloves, probably more for more folks)
chili flakes
sea salt
red peppers, cut narrowly lengthwise
[allow peppers to soften a bit, then add]
bamboo shoots
scallions
[cook until just starting to brown, then add]
lime juice
white wine (pref. quite dry, and even better if it’s suitable for drinking with the meal)
a bit more lime-infused oil
coarsely chopped cilantro
tilapia filet (number depends on # people eating)
[allow this to simmer, covered, for about 2 minutes. flip tiliapia over, allow two more minutes. meanwhile, pop your handy Trader Joe’s jasmine rice in the microwave for its three minute cooking time, and one minute resting time – this stuff always comes out perfect, as a side note.]
give pan a final deglazing with a bit of rice vinegar (not too much).
Serve fish, sauce, and vegetables over rice, with a wedge of lime and a spring of cilantro.
Well??