Salt Baked Snapper With Ice Wine Nage Recipes

SEA SALT-CRUSTED PINK SNAPPER WITH ICE WINE NAGE

Steps:

• Using the bottom of a heavy pan, crush juniper berries and star anise. Add to a large bowl along with salt, fennel seeds, lemon, and orange zest; mix well. Add egg whites and stir until well combined.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees.
• Coat fish with oil on oil sides. Spread 3 cups of salt mixture on a rimmed baking sheet large enough to hold the fish. Place fish on top of salt; cover fish completely with remaining salt. Bake until a the tip of a knife inserted in the thickest part of the fish feels warm to the touch when you remove it, 30 to 45 minutes.
• Meanwhile, in a large skillet, melt 2 tablespoons butter over medium heat. Add onions and cook, stirring, until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add endive and carrots and cook 2 minutes more. Add wine, lemon juice, orange juice, and saffron. Increase heat to medium-high and bring to a boil. Cook until liquid has reduced by one-third, about 5 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer vegetables to a bowl; set aside. Reduce heat to medium-low and whisk remaining 10 tablespoons butter, 1 or 2 tablespoons at a time, into the nage, just until melted. Season with salt and pepper. Add vegetables back into the nage until just heated through.
• Using a knife and spoon, break the salt crust from the fish and remove it in sections. Lift fish away from bones and serve with nage and garnish with parsley.

WHOLE RED SNAPPER BAKED IN SALT

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
• Rinse and dry the fish thoroughly. Whisk together the egg whites and water and combine with the salt in a large mixing bowl. Work the mixture with your hands to distribute the water and egg whites in the salt. The salt mixture should hold together when you press a mound of it together between the palms of your hands. If it doesn't, work in another egg white.
• Fill a baking dish that is 2 inches longer than the fish about 1/3 full of the salt mixture. Place the fish on top. Cover the fish with the rest of the salt mixture and smooth the salt over with a spatula. Place the fish in the oven for about 40 minutes. The only way to know whether the fish is done is by inserting an instant-read thermometer through the layer of salt and measuring the temperature of the fish. When it reaches 135 degrees F, take it out, and serve immediately.
• Bring the fish to the table on a baking sheet or on a large platter and crack it with a mallet or even a hammer. Pull back the salt layer, then peel off the skin with a fork. Serve on hot plates.

SALT CRUSTED SNAPPER

Steps:

• Heat the oven to 425 degrees F/220 degrees C. Tuck the lemon slices into the belly of the fish. Stir the salt and egg whites together in a bowl. Chop all but 6 mint leaves. Stir the chopped mint through the salt and put the others inside the fish. Put the fish in a baking dish and cover completely with the salt to seal. Bake 25 minutes. Crack the crust off with a knife, moving all the salt away from the surface. Peel back the skin from the fish, and carefully remove the fillets.

WHOLE RED SNAPPER BAKED IN A SALT CRUST

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450°F.
• In a bowl stir together salt and water until combined well. On a large baking sheet spread half of salt mixture in a rectangle just larger than the red snapper and set fish on top. Halve lemon crosswise and cut 3 slices from 1 half, reserving remaining half. Insert slices into cavity of fish. Pat remaining salt mixture over fish to cover completely and bake in middle of oven 30 minutes.
• Rap all around edge of salt crust with the back of a large spoon to loosen and lift top off. Squeeze juice from reserved lemon half over fish and drizzle with oil.

SALT CRUSTED WHOLE RED SNAPPER

Steps:

• When cooking with a whole fish you must first be sure that the fish is gutted, your local fish market will do this for you. The skin should be scaled and the gills and fins removed. Leave on the head and tail. Rinse the fish inside and out then pat dry.
• In a mixing bowl, combine the parsley, orange, fennel, bay leaves, shallot, red pepper flakes, fennel seed, and 1/4-cup olive oil. Stuff the cavity of the fish with 3/4 of the mixture, then spread the remaining 1/4 on the bottom of a roasting pan so the fish will not stick.
• Transfer the fish to the roasting pan and rub the skin with remaining olive oil. In another bowl, whip the egg whites to a stiff peak, then fold in the salt to make a paste. Smear the salt paste over the entire fish and roast in a preheated 350 degree F oven for 30 to 40 minutes. The egg whites form a hard crust that will crack like a shell. To serve, scoop the flesh from the fish with a spoon.

SALT-BAKED FISH WITH EASY CAPER BEURRE BLANC

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Combine the kosher salt and orange zest and juice in a large bowl. Add room temperature water 1/2 cup at a time until the mixture feels like wet sand. Spread 1/3 of the mixture on a baking sheet and flatten to the same shape of the fish. Lay the fish on top of the salt. Season the cavity with a little of the salt and stuff with the sliced lemon and parsley sprigs. Top the fish with the remaining salt mixture, covering the fish completely and pressing lightly to pack the salt onto the fish.
• Bake until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the middle of the fish registers 135 to 140 degrees F, 30 to 35 minutes. Remove the fish from the oven and sit at room temperature for 8 to 10 minutes.
• While the fish rests, combine the wine, vinegar, shallot and capers in a small saucepan and place over high heat. Cook until reduced by half, about 6 minutes. Reduce the heat to low and stir in the cream. Stir in the butter a few chunks at a time, stirring until the butter is melted before adding more. Remove from the heat, season with salt and pepper and set aside.
• Use the back of a spoon to break through the salt and remove the chunks, peeling the skin away with the salt. Gently separate the flesh from the bones with a spoon or fish spatula and portion onto plates. Serve with the sauce and sprinkle with the chopped parsley.