Looking for a fast meal that appears fancy? This is it. It's great! Whip it up for a significant other and let them think you spent all day slaving over the stove for a romantic dinner. I promise not to tell them otherwise.
I make this recipe with tilapia, one of my staple fishes. I tend to buy large amounts of it fresh at Whole Foods and keep it frozen in my freezer for just such last-minute dinners. It's a "beginner" fish, good for people new to seafood, it's healthy (very low in mercury), and it's cheap. Even at a high end store such as Whole Foods it often only runs around $6-$7 a pound. If you are not a tilapia fan, however, feel free to substitute another light, white fish such as flounder, sole, or catfish.
If you keep your fish frozen, make sure to take it out of the freezer when you are heading to work. It can defrost in a refrigerator throughout the day or at air temperature for a couple hours. (Note: cats and fish on the counter do not go well together.) Once it's defrosted, or if it was already fresh, we are ready to begin!
1) Marinate the fish in lemon juice for 10-15 minutes. Don't overthink this step - just throw the fish in a dish, or even on a plate with a dip in the center, and poor a bit of lemon juice over it. Think a sprinkling rather than a drenching.
2) After marinating, dredge the fish in flour, making sure to get a thin coating on each side. Do not worry if only a little sticks - that's perfect.
3) Heat a drop of olive oil in a pan over medium heat. Add the fish when it's hot.
4) Cut up fresh lemons into wedges and place them on and around the fish in the pan. You can use as few or as many as you want, but I prefer to add lemon wedges quite liberally - probably two or three lemons per pound of fish.
5) Toss chopped, slivered, or crushed macadamia nuts in the pan, on and around the fish, as well. Again, in my mind, the more the better.
6) Cook for about 10 minutes or until done, flipping the fish halfway through.
Done!
Don't hesitate to cut a filet of fish in half with your spatula to check to see if it's done. In my experience, dinner guests care a lot more about the taste than a split filet! Let me know how it goes!
Your blogs make me hungry... >.>
ReplyDeleteI'm waiting for grad school to be over so I can go back to cooking. I actually want to make a website for posting recipes with pictures. I'll let you know when it's up in case you want to be part of it. ^_^;
Hope all is well,
~Lindsay