| Whole Fish in Salt |
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Although the most abundant ingredient in this recipe is salt, this dish is not salty. The purpose of the salt is to encrust the whole fish, cook it evenly and not let it dry out. The result is a very moist fish with clean and pure flavor. My favorite fish to cook using the salt crust method are Black and Mediterranean Bass, but you can use almost any whole fish. Serve this dish with boiled potatoes, salad, and good crusty bread for a simple summer meal.
Note about fish: To make your job much easier, ask your fishmonger to gut and scale your fish and remove the gills. Note about salt: It is important to use course salt for this recipe to prevent it from eating into the flesh and making the fish salty. Sea salt is ideal, but it is very expensive and hard to find in large quantities. Course kosher salt is the best alternative. You can buy it in large boxes in any supermarket. |
| A 1.5 Lb fish serves 2 people |
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| Ingredients | Directions |
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1 whole bass gutted and scaled 1 bunch of herbs (any mix of dill, parsley, cilantro) 1 lemon sliced 1/4" thick |
Preheat oven to 475F. Rinse the fish in cold water and dry with paper towels. Stuff its tummy with lemon slices and herbs. The main purpose of the herbs is to keep the salt out of the fish, so be generous with your herbs and make sure they stick out of the fish. |
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Course Kosher salt to cover the fish (about 3 Lb) |
Encrusting the fish in salt: Line a 2" deep baking dish with aluminum foil. Pour enough salt to make a layer 3/4" deep (you don't have to cover the entire baking dish, just the part where the fish will be. Sprinkle salt lightly with water. Place the fish on top and pour more salt on top of the fish to form a top 3/4" layer (leave head and tail uncovered). Push aluminum foil to hug the fish and salt. This will prevent the salt from spreading all over the baking dish. Splash the top salt layer lightly with water to help salt form a crust when it bakes.
Baking: Bake in preheated 450F oven 10 minutes per pound of fish, plus an additional 7 minutes. Let the fish rest 15 minutes before removing salt. The fish will continue cooking slowly even after it's out of the oven. Removing fish from salt: Crack the salt crust gently with a knife. Remove the top layer of salt. Gently pick up the fish using your hand and a spatula, and move it to a plate. It is very important not to tear the skin or the salt will get to the flesh and make it salty. Remove the herbs and lemon. Brush off any salt remaining on the fish. Deboning: Make a shallow incision at the tail (same direction as if cutting the tail off). Peel off the top skin pulling from tail to head. Run a fork along the back of the fish to loosen fillet and lift it off the bone onto a serving plate. Remove the backbone. Pick up the bottom fillet and place it on a serving plate skin side up. Peel off the skin. |
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2 Tbsp garlic herb butter |
Serve with melted garlic herb butter. |