Top-That Tilapia

Hello Fellow Food Lovers,

Tonight I tried my hand at fish. Growing up in Seattle, I had my fair share of trout, salmon, and any other seafood you could possibly dream up (except maybe lobster). The one thing I have learned from all the fish fashionistas in Seattle is that there is one major mistake that people and restaurants make: an overcooked fish. While we're not talking sushi here, the best way to cook a fish is by doing the least amount of cooking necessary, with a rosy almost raw center. Like a medium rare steak. And you'll get a tender filet every time.

So here's what I did. I got two filets  of Colorado tilapia from Whole Foods. If budget is an issue, tilapia is definitely on the cheaper side. I've had tilapia in restuarants before but have never tried to cook it. What I have gained from experience, however, is that tilapia makes for a great quick and easy sauteed filet. Its a tender, very mild white fish; you don't have to pick out bones and its a great base for plenty of rubs. It's not too fatty, not too hardy: the perfect, simple, light, refreshing, filet. And incredibly easy to make.

For the filets I decided to try two different rubs for each. I also had just bought Japanese panko that I was eager to use as a crunchy outside crust.

Panko. For those of you unfamiliar to panko, it means "bread crumb" in Japanese and is made up of tiny crispy bread crumbs taken from the center of the bread. It's great to encrust chicken, meat, fish, or veggies like eggplant and zucchini. You can also use it as a thickener in soups, or as a quick crunchy topping for desserts. If anyone has ever ordered deep-fried goat cheese on a salad, that delicious chevre ball is coated in panko.

First, the rubs. As I've discussed before, rubs are an excellent way to quickly season any meat or fish--they add a lot of concentrated flavor in every bite while not overwhelming the taste of the meat or fish. For the first rub, I used the "Caribbean Adobe" seasoning from Penzey's spice shop. It is AWESOME in particular for fish. It's made with onion, salt, pepper, oregano, cumin, and garlic. Basically every possible goodness in one spice mix. I put around two tablespoons of the spice mix in a ziploc bag (you may always had more or less). I took one of the filets, rubbed some lemon juice and olive oil and put in the bag to coat evenly.

For the second rub, I experimented making one from scratch. I put in about a 1/2 tablespoon of dried ginger, teaspoon of paprika, a tablespoon of garlic salt, 1/2 tablespoon of cumin, and last but not least, about 1/2 tablespoon of coriander. It gave the fish a sort of middle eastern flavor. The measurements are purely guesstimates as I didn't use any measuring devices--but just put a little in at a time and taste as you go.

Once I had both filets rubbed, I dipped each one in the panko batter. To make the panko stick, I mixed about 1/2 cup of the panko with one egg. This way, the panko stays on the fish while its cooked and the egg helps to give the crust in also light fluffy texture. Unfortunately, once I threw the filets on the pan, the panko began to fall off. So, next time I would suggest adding a few tablespoons of butter to help it stick. It would also add a nice extra rich flavor. I would also suggest dipping the fish in just the egg batter and then coating with the dried bread crumbs.

I decided to saute the tilapia filets because it is easy and quick. However, with the panko, you can also bake the fish or deep-fry it in oil. For the healthier option, I quickly sauteed the fish in olive oil at medium heat. I'd give each side of filet 3-5 minutes, or until the fish is the tenderness that you desire. I can assure that with any fish, the less you cook it, the more tender. Fish tends to get chewy and rubbery the longer you cook it, and it cooks fast, so make sure to watch it closely!

Take the filets off the pan and voila! Panko-crusted tilapia is served. I have to admit that while I loved both of the rubs, I slightly preferred the coriander, paprika, and ginger rub I had made.

On the side, we made a salad with mixed greens, yellow cherry tomatoes, and cucumbers. And a yogurt-based dressing. I was first introduced to yogurt dressings while in Slovenia, in which my host made a yogurt-sunflower oil dressing that was light, didn't welt the lettuce, and incredibly rich in flavor. It's a great base for any flavor--mix in cumin and you have more of an indian taste, put in honey and mustard for a sweeter honey-mustard like dressing, throw in mint and lemon juice for a more mediterranean taste. Any way, you can't go wrong.

For this dressing, we mixed in around a teaspoon of ground mustard, a teaspoon of cumin, salt, pepper, lemon juice, and a bit of honey. We used about a half cup of goat milk yogurt (because we both can't eat cow milk). This goat milk yogurt is excellent by the way, can be found at Whole Foods, and has the taste and texture of the dry Greek yogurt that is oh so popular now. Mix all together and the dressing is complete! The sweet taste of honey contrasted really nicely with the salt and spicy cumin.

And for dessert, we enjoyed a bowl of coconut-milk based, chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream (great for glutards, lactards, and anyone who likes the taste of coconut milk). Throw some fresh cut strawberries and some whip cream and you've got a delicious sundae.

So there you go! The whole meal only took about 10 minutes to prepare and 5-7 minutes to cook--a great meal to whip up when you're starving! I would give an upper estimate to cook this for two of around 20 minutes for the whole process.

Now go off and encrust something and enjoy the delicious contrast of a crunchy outside and tender inside. You can honestly try it with anything!

Love & Doughnuts,

The Mrakulous Kitchen