Branzino With Arugula Sauce Recipes

BRANZINO WITH ARUGULA SAUCE

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Bring a small saucepan of water to a boil, add egg, cook 6 minutes, drain and set aside. Place a Silpat or sheet of parchment paper in a baking dish large enough to hold the fish. Brush Silpat or paper with 1/2 tablespoon oil. Brush fish on both sides with another 1/2 tablespoon of oil and place in dish, skin side down. Combine fleur de sel, pink peppercorns, thyme and lemon zest and scatter on fish.
• Peel egg and coarsely chop. Into a blender, add egg, arugula, chervil, parsley, 3 tablespoons water, the lemon juice and the 1/3 cup olive oil. Process to a fine purée. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Set aside.
• Put fish in the oven and bake 12 to 15 minutes, until just cooked through. Spread sauce on each of 4 warm dinner plates. Cut each fillet in four pieces and place two pieces on each plate, on the arugula sauce. Season fish with salt and pepper. Garnish with arugula and serve.

ROASTED BRANZINO WITH LEMON AND THYME

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 450 degrees. Pat fish dry; rub cavity and skin with oil, then season generously with salt and pepper. Stuff cavity with lemon slices and a few sprigs of thyme. Transfer to a rimmed baking sheet, standing fish upright (cavity-side down); anchor in place with 3 lemon wedges along each side. Scatter remaining thyme sprigs around fish.
• Roast until fish is just cooked through, 17 to 22 minutes, depending on size. Fillet fish and serve with roasted lemon wedges or one of the fish sauces.

GRILLED BRANZINO WITH BASIL, LIME AND GINGER

Steps:

• Make the marinade. Preheat a grill to medium high. Meanwhile, combine the lime zest, ginger, shallot, olive oil, 1 teaspoon kosher salt and a few grinds of pepper in a bowl.
• Stuff the fish. Thinly slice 1 lime. Stuff the slices into the cavity of each fish along with the basil leaves and ginger slices. Set aside half of the marinade for serving, then brush the rest on the fish. Season inside and out with kosher salt and pepper.
• Grill the fish. Preheat a grill to medium high and brush the grates with vegetable oil. Transfer the fish to the grill and cook until the skin starts to crisp, 5 to 7 minutes. Do not move the fish or the skin will stick to the grill. To flip the fish, place a spatula under the head end and use tongs to hold the cavity closed; gently roll the fish over. Cook the fish on the other side until the skin is crisp, 5 to 7 more minutes. Check the eyes: When they're both white, the fish is done. Transfer to a platter. Cut the remaining 4 limes in half; grill cut side down until caramelized, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer to the platter.
• Fillet the fish. Using a fork and starting at the tail end, peel back the skin from one side of the fish; discard. Run a knife along the back of the fish to separate the top and bottom fillets. Use the knife to remove any additional skin along the back. Using a spoon, gently loosen and lift the top fillet away from the bottom fillet. Lift the head and use the spoon to carefully separate the spine from the bottom fillet. Discard the tail, head and stuffing. Remove and discard the skin from the bottom fillet. Repeat with the second fish.
• Serve. Drizzle the fillets with the reserved marinade; finish with some olive oil and a sprinkle of flaky sea salt. Serve with the grilled limes and more basil.

PAN-SEARED BRANZINO WITH TOMATO AND CAPERS

Steps:

• Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Place the branzino fillets on paper towels and dry well. With a sharp knife, score the skin of each fillet by making three shallow cuts on a slight diagonal. Sprinkle the fillets on all sides with the salt.
• Add the oil to the hot pan; then add the fillets, skin side down, being sure to lay the fish away from you in the pan. Press gently on each fillet to make sure the skin has full contact with the pan. Allow the fish to cook undisturbed for 3 minutes. Using a fish spatula, gently flip the fillets and cook for another 30 seconds. Remove the branzino to a platter, skin side up, and keep warm.
• To the hot pan, add the tomatoes, capers and olives. Cook for 1 minute, stirring with a wooden spoon. Add the white wine, reduce the heat to medium, and cook until the wine is reduced by half, about 2 minutes. Stir in the butter and parsley. Spoon the sauce over the branzino and serve.

BRANZINO MEDITERRANEAN

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 325 degrees F (165 degrees C).
• Drizzle 1 tablespoon olive oil into a large baking pan; add onion and season with salt and pepper.
• Place the 2 cleaned fish into the baking pan and stuff each cavity with 1 lemon wedge, 1 rosemary sprig, and some of the red onion. Pour white wine and lemon juice over each fish and sprinkle with oregano. Drizzle the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over the 2 fish.
• Bake in the preheated oven until fish is opaque and flakes easily with a fork, about 25 minutes. Gently slide a spatula between the bones to separate fish; remove all the bones. Serve fish on a platter and garnish with parsley and lemon wedges.