Sea Salt Crusted Pink Snapper With Ice Wine Nage Recipes

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.

SALT-BAKED SNAPPER WITH ICE WINE NAGE

Steps:

• To prepare snapper: Heat oven to 400 degrees. Finely grate zest of lemon and orange into a large bowl. Squeeze juices from lemon and orange into a separate bowl, and reserve for preparing nage. To bowl of zests, add the salt, juniper berries, fennel seed, star anise and egg whites. Mix well. Spread half the mixture flat on a baking tray. Rub snapper all over with olive oil, and place on top of salt mixture. Spread with remaining salt mixture, patting it down and leaving mixture thinner at edges than on top. (This is where crust will be cracked after baking.) Bake 30-35 minutes for medium-rare fish, 40 to 45 minutes for medium.
• While fish bakes, prepare nage and vegetables: Melt 2 tablespoons butter in a sauté pan over medium heat. Add onions, and sauté until translucent, about 4 minutes. Add endive and carrots, and sauté for 2 minutes. Add wine, reserved lemon and orange juice and saffron. Raise heat to medium-high and boil until nage is reduced by about a third, about 5 minutes.
• Remove nage from heat. Using a slotted spoon, transfer vegetables to a bowl, and set them aside. Return pan to low heat, and whisk in remaining 10 tablespoons butter, a tablespoon or two at a time. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Return vegetables to pan, and reheat just until warmed. Add parsley, remove from heat, and keep warm.
• To serve, use a kitchen mallet to crack salt crust lightly around edges of fish. Remove salt crust with a knife, and transfer portions of fish fillet to each of four plates. Top with nage and vegetables, and serve immediately.

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.