My husband and I love cooking ! Fridays and Saturday dinners for us is a time to make something out of the ordinary. Off late, our 5 year old has been repeatedly asking for fish… specifically fish without thorns, so that he can eat it all by himself.
So as we were wondering what to cook for dinner tonight, we decided on pan-fried fillets of fish which take less than 12 minutes to prepare and cook. We added in some steamed vegetables, mashed potatoes with some Harissa Spiced Couscous and VOILA!! A tasty (and healthy) dinner is all ready!
There a few components
of this dish that need to be prepared before you fry the Fish. The toughest
thing about frying fish is timing so you don’t overcook this delicate,
delectable food. Fish fries up fast, so having all of the food you’re serving
with it ready in advance is a smart move.
Lets start
cookin !
Ingredients:
Fish Fillet:
3 fish
fillets
50 gms
butter
2 tbsp Olive
Oil
Freshly crushed
Black Pepper
1 tsp Sumac
2 tbsp Flour
Salt to
taste
Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce:
50 gms
Butter
5 pods
Garlic (Minced)
1 lemon
wedge
1 tsp
Oregano
1 tsp Thyme
Harissa spiced Couscous :
1 cup
Couscous
2 tsp
Harissa Paste
1 tsp Tahini
Dressing
Salt to
taste
Other Ingredients:
4 Potatoes (boiled
and smoothly mashed)
1 cup Green
peas, Sweet Corn mix
Handful of
French Beans
Method:
Prep all the
Ingredients.
Season the Fish
Fillets with salt, pepper, Sumac* and Olive Oil.
*Sumac is a widely used, essential spice in Middle Eastern and Mediterranean cooking. It's used in everything from dry rubs, marinades, and dressing. It's great over vegetables, grilled lamb, chicken and fish. Ground sumac also makes a nice, flavorful topping on dips like hummus.**
Dredge, or
lightly coat, the fish in a very small amount of flour to ensure an extra
crispy finish.
Fry it in a
small amount of olive oil. Fish fries up fast, so having all of the food you’re serving with it ready in advance is a smart move.
**TIP:
Be sure to use regular olive oil. Extra virgin
or virgin olive oil can burn if they are used to fry food at too high of a
temperature. Vegetable or peanut oil would be OK to use as well. **
Perfectly Cooked Fish Fillet.
Lets start with the Sauce.
Wipe out the pan, melt the butter.
Add the Garlic and fry till the garlic is light golden brown in colour.
Add the
herbs and take it off the gas.
Slowly add
the lemon juice and mix well.
The sauce is
now ready to be poured onto the Fish Fillet.
**TIP:
it is preferable to prepare the sauce before you fry the Fish Fillets since the
fish tends to get cold real fast.**
Separately boil the
Green peas, Sweet corn and the French Beans in lightly salted water till they
are cooked. Keep aside.
**TIP: Once the veggies are cooked, immerse them in cold water to preserve their original colour. **
Boil and
mash the Potatoes. Mix 1 tbsp softened butter and mash till smooth. Also add
salt to taste.
To make the
Couscous. I have used the same water that was remaining after boiling the
veggies.
Once the
couscous is cooked, add the Harissa Paste and mix well. Keep aside.
To plate
this dish, lay a Fish Fillet on a bed of Mashed Potatoes and veggies. Pour the Lemon Garlic Butter Sauce on top of
it and serve it with a side of Harissa Spiced Couscous. Spread on some Tahini
dressing for that added touch of flavour to the couscous.
Enjoyyy !!
