The Primal Blueprint Cookbook (20 page)
Read The Primal Blueprint Cookbook Online
Authors: Mark Sisson,Jennifer Meier
If cooking fish cakes in more than one batch to avoid crowding, keep cooked fish cakes warm on an oven-safe dish or plate in a 225°F oven.
Serve with Lemon Caper Sauce (see recipe on page 232).
ARAMASALATA
(G
REEK
F
ISH
R
OE
S
PREAD
)
Grok, our prototypical hunter-gatherer ancestor, loved nutrient-dense eggs of all sorts, including fish eggs, sometimes called roe. Taramasalata is a classic tangy Greek fish roe spread or dip that is great paired with sliced radishes, celery sticks, carrot sticks, olives, and nut-meal crackers. The traditional recipes often use starchy stale bread and mashed potato as extenders, but this Grok-approved version substitutes finely chopped blanched almonds instead.
Of course, the right oil is important too, so instead of the soybean oil often used in commercially prepared taramasalata, we’ll use a healthier nut oil or olive oil. (Be aware that extra virgin olive oil creates a much more assertive flavor than mild olive oil or most nut oils.)
INGREDIENTS:
½ cup blanched almonds*
1 garlic clove
2 ounces (about ¼ cup) fish roe (cod or carp)
2 scallions or small bunch of chives, finely sliced (divided use)
Juice of 1 lemon
cup light olive oil or a nut oil
Sea salt, to taste
INSTRUCTIONS:
In a food processor, pulse the almonds and garlic until they are the texture of fine crumbs (avoid processing too much or you will have paste). Add one half of the scallions, the roe, and the lemon juice, pulse again. Drizzle in the oil slowly while the food processor runs until the mixture is creamy and emulsified. Add a bit more oil if too thick.
Adjust flavor with salt if needed.
Roe, Roe, Roe Your Boat
Fish roe, either carp or cod, is available in jars or cans at Greek, Middle Eastern, or Asian food markets. In jars the roe may be labeled as tarama, and in cans it may be labeled as pressed fish roe and will need to be broken up with a fork after opening. Jarred tarama is salted and will keep for about a year if kept unopened and well chilled in the refrigerator or freezer, so it is very handy for making taramasalata as well as garnishing or whisking into scrambled eggs, soups, or salad dressings. Larger jars of carp and cod roe are not nearly as pricey as tiny jars of fancy grade caviar and roe found in specialty gourmet sections of grocery stores.
Serve in a small dish garnished with remaining scallions on top, drizzled with a bit of extra virgin olive oil, with sliced vegetables or olives for scooping.
Store tightly covered and well chilled in the refrigerator. Use within 5 days.
*To blanch whole almonds, pour boiling water over a bowl of whole almonds to cover, let sit 1 minute. Then drain, rinse with cold water, and drain again. Pat almonds dry and “pinch” each almond to slip skin off. Do not let almonds soak too long or they will lose crispness.
HOLE
F
ISH
B
AKED IN
S
EA
S
ALT
A whole fish is impressive on the table and cooking it encased in a hard shell of salt ensures that the meat will stay moist and flavorful. Don’t be alarmed by all the salt in the recipe—it seals in the moisture without penetrating the skin and over-seasoning the fish. The Italians perfected this method of cooking and you can continue to hone the recipe to your liking. If you don’t care for the delicate licorice flavor of fennel seeds, use another spice or simply stuff the fish with fresh herbs.
INGREDIENTS:
1 2–5 pound whole striped bass or other fish, cleaned, gutted, and scaled
½ teaspoon fennel seeds, crushed and chopped with a knife
¼ teaspoon black pepper
A half-dozen parsley sprigs
3–4 thin slices of lemon
2 egg whites
4 cups coarse kosher salt
Serve with lemon wedges
SERVINGS:
2–3 pound fish yields 2–3 servings
4–5 pound fish yields 3–6 servings
INSTRUCTIONS:
Preheat oven to 450°F.
Line a baking pan with foil and let foil hang over the edge.
Rinse fish and pat dry. Sprinkle fennel and pepper inside the fish and stuff with lemon slices and parsley.
Whisk egg whites by hand or in a mixer. First the eggs will become foamy—continue whisking until the consistency is stiffer and you can pull up peaks with the whisk. Gently stir in salt.
Spread about 1 cup of the salt mixture in the bottom of pan, spreading it out to the length of the fish. Set the fish on top. Cover the fish with the remaining salt, packing it down gently but firmly with your hands. The entire fish should be covered with the salt.
