Flavorful whole roasted branzino. Mangiare!

This is such a no-brainer for dinner. Branzino is easily available now in Reno. I see it on the bed of ice in the Whole Foods fishmonger section all the time. It’s also not particularly expensive either. If you don’t care to cook the fish whole and bone it - although it’s a nice skill to have - let the nice people in WF’s fish department do it for you. It doesn’t cost a cent. Can’t get branzino, then use any whole white fish. This recipe would be awesome for Arctic Char (which is expensive) or even better a fresh Walleye from Minnesota. Yum.

I love doing fish like this, but when a grill isn’t available don’t despair. Use a cast iron grill pan with those nice raised lines. Don’t have one (why not? They’re cheap)? Pan fry the thing.

The point here is the aromatics inside the fish. Fennel is so underused by Americans - especially out here in the west. I love it raw in salads, braised as a side dish vegetable, in stews and it’s a natural with a white fish like branzino. Fennel is also a natural with citrus and shallots.

The olive viniagrette is another simple idea taken from the classic ingredients of rustic southern European cuisine. Olive tapenade in jars is available in the aisles of most supermarkets these days. Can’t find it? No worries. Break out the little food prep Cuisinart and pulse some black and green olives - whatever you’ve got, with some olive oil and garlic.

Voila! Tapenade. Make extra and put it into a Mason jar in the fridge for use in salad dressing or meat braises.

Finally, try potatoes without the damn mayonnaise. Done like this chef has, you’ll taste the real potato flavor.

If you were at my table, you’d get this dish served with some nice Dijon mustard for the fish, and lots of good cornichon pickles to nibble on.

So it’s time to venture out beyond tilapia, dear reader.

Branzino for dinner.

Q&A

How can you tell when seafood is done cooking?

A. It bursts into flames.
B. It doubles in size.
C. It turns from translucent to opaque.
D. It asks to go back in the water.

ANSWER: C

Most seafood will gradually turn opaque white or pink.

-maven