SNAPPER
Ingredients:
- 3kg gilled, gutted and scaled snapper,
- salt flakes
- 1 cup of extra virgin olive oil
- 2 cups of fish stock
- 4 finely sliced garlic cloves
- 30 pitless green or black olives, if needed remove the pits
- 2 cups of Vernaccia or a dry white wine
- 150gm diced butter
- 1/3 cup finely sliced flatleaf parsley leaves,
Method:
- Remove snapper from fridge 30-40 minutes before cooking. Cover and set aside in a cool place to come to room temperature.
- Using a pair of kitchen scissors, trim the snapper’s fins and tail.
- Thoroughly rinse the belly cavity removing any blood and pat dry.
- Score on both sides with 5 or 6 diagonal cuts, angled towards the tail, just through to the bone.
- Sprinkle both sides of the fish generously with salt and pat it into the skin.
- Heat a large baking dish on the stove top. Add oil and when hot, place the fish into it, scored side down.
- Cook for about 6mins, until skin is crisp, then turn and cook for a further 4 mins, turn off heat and leave in frypan.
- Preheat oven to 220c
- Meanwhile place fish stock in a small saucepan and bring to the boil. Remove from heat and cover to keep warm.
- Scatter the garlic and olives over the top of the fish and add vernaccia or wine.
- Reheat frypan and bring to the boil then add fish stock.
- Cover tightly with a double layer of foil and place in the preheated oven at 220c for about 25mins, until fish is cooked thoroughly, basting frequently.
- Check the flesh where the fish is scored, that is the flesh near the bone on the thickest part of the fish which should be white.
- Remove from the oven, place fish on a platter, cover loosely with foil and set aside in a warm place.
- Place the baking dish with the juices from the fish, on the stove top over a high heat, bring cooking juices to the boil until reduced by a third.
- Whisk in the butter, stir in the parsley and spoon sauce over the fish.
