Tuesday, October 25, 2011

Fish: The other white meat

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I know I know it isn't the other white meat. I just ran out of titles for my blog post and "Fish" didn't have that je ne sais quoi. Ok, so we went to Wegmans. Don't hate me but I didn't see what the fuss was about. They are expensive and they didn't even have kimchi when I went to go get it. Every market around here has kimchi. What is with that? No chicken gizzards? You have every kind of pate but you don't sell chicken gizzards? I do admit that their cheese selection, meat selection and fish selections are awesome. Then again you pay for that awesome. I did buy a whole fish there. Fresh fish. It was a red snapper. I had a recipe from the Kimchi Chronicles that I wanted to make. It called for bass but Wegman's didn't have it. So, snapper it was.

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The recipe was great. We loved it. The pictures not so great. Hell, making a dead snapper look snappy just doesn't work. I don't care if you put a French tablecloth under it.

Try-round-coated-cloth

Ohcomeon! You know what I am talking about and you know who you are. The cute cliche picture of the slab of meat that you made for your adoring family and that you served on your best linen. Oh wait! It also had that ever so precious old looking cutlery in the photo too. You know which one I mean. The one that would give you lead poisoning if you ever really used it. Once again I digress.

crab

Ok, here is a picture that I pulled from my archives of crab at Pikes Place in Washington. Even THEY look better than a snapper.

bestfish

Here is another one I took. Ok, maybe I just didn't get a good picture of the snapper. I need some lessons on picture taking. I am winging it here folks. My interests are elsewhere.

morefish

Wait! One more.

Ok ok... Dinner was great.

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Whole Grilled Bass with Makgeolli and Doenjang
adapted from The Kimchi Chronicles

NOTE: I substituted Red Snapper for Bass. I also used Saki instead of Makgeolli.

2 whole black sea bass or striped bass (about 1.5lbs each)
3 Tbl doenjang (soybean paste)
3 Tbl rice vinegar
1 Tbl soy sauce
1 Tbl toasted sesame oil
1/2 C makgeolli, sake, white wine, or water
2 Tbl finely diced shallots
2 Tbl finely chopped ginger
5 Scallions, thinly sliced

Cut diagonal slashes into the flesh on both sides of the fish and arrange in a large, shallow dish. Whisk together the doenjang, vinegar, soy sauce, sesame oil, makgeolli, shallots, and ginger. Pour over the fish, making sure to get the marinade into the slashes. Cover and marinate for at least 20 minutes at room temperature and up to 6 hours in the refrigerator.

Preheat grill to medium-high or preheat a ridged cast iron grill pan over medium-high heat. Place fish on the grill, brush with some of the marinade, and grill until browned and crisp on the first side and the flesh is easily pierced with a paring knife, 7 to 10 minutes, depending on thickness. Carefully turn the fish and baste with more of the marinade. Grill on the second side until the flesh is easily pierced with a paring knife, another 7 to 10 minutes. Transfer the fish to a large pan or platter, let rest for at least 5 minutes. Served sprinkled with the scallions.

9 comments :

  1. You crack me up!  This fish still looks quite tasty :)  And I am a fish lover....We don't have Wegmans here, but I have heard lovely things about it...even though they didn't have much of what you were looking for! 

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  2. Ok, my slab of meat was on an old stable door that I pulled off a burn pile, not on a fancy tablecloth. 

    The fish does look good, actually. Especially the close-up with the rice.

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  3. HAHAHA! I know what you mean and thank GOD that I'm not that blogger with the french linen, the rusted (but gorgeous) knife that NO ONE in their right mind would use and the endless planks of "weathered" wood. I've got some shots on weathered wood, but that's just weathered and Murray hasn't ever changed that table. You'll never see me weathering wood. Janis, love you! Oh about the Kimchi Chronicles, I just discovered this book and am getting it, so excited! Fish looks good, crabs as well. 

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  4. Hahaha! love it..fish is the real white meat! Cannot imagine why you can;t get chicken livers..you live in some weird Bermuda triangle of food.  If my cutlery looks weird it's because I didn't awash it properly. Great post.

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  5. Actually why isn't fish considered one of the 'other' white meats; well, guess cause it's fish? Anyway...I get you and I love your irreverence. As I so carefully place my rusted fork over the artfully folded napkin on my weathered wood table which is really just a piece of fencing from Home Depot. NOT!

    I think your fish looks great...and I love the crabs pic...and  you. :)

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  6. Oh this looks delicious. How can you even call something a grocery store that doesn't have kimchi and gizzards? Blasphemy! 

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  7. Just because I cannot resist - it is Pike Place Market, no s. You do this post just for me today?
    Yup, from Seattle.

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  8. I stand corrected Goober. Pike Place.

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  9. I think it looks delicious.  I love the Kimchi Chronicles (show and cookbook) -- I just came across it and am catching up on episodes.  I find it odd too that you can't find ingredients like tamarind and palm sugar - in large grocery stores on Long Island - I'm five minutes from NYC - why can't they have these things?  I have to admit - I've seen gizzards :-) here but kimchi not so much - only at Hmart.

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