Fried Northern Shrimp

Yesterday was fish share day. We picked up the last 5 lb bag of beautifully fresh native Northern Shrimp of the season from our Community Supported Fishery. Northern shrimp are the only shrimp native to New England and from what I understand, they’re only around in the middle of winter. So this is the end of the line for us until next year. How exciting! What to do, what to do?

I decided to fry them. Northern shrimp are very sweet and you’d think breading and frying would mask their delicate flavor. Not so in this case.

A light coating of flour and panko creates just the right amount of crunch to showcase their tenderness without weighing them down in oil, and the savory seasonings complement the shrimp’s sweetness. The key is starting each batch with the oil at 375 degrees, and keeping it above 300 degrees as it fries. If the temperature slips below 300 degrees, the breading will absorb the oil rather than browning and it will become saturated. That said, these are easy to make, and the result rivals anything you’d find at your local seaside clam shack.

Fried Northern Shrimp – Serves 4 – 6

5 – 6 C Northern Shrimp, peeled with heads and tails removed (about 5 lbs whole)
1.5 C flour
1 C panko crumbs
1 t salt
3 t old bay seasoning
1.5 – 2 quarts canola oil

If purchased whole, remove

In a medium bowl mix flour, panko, salt and old bay seasoning. Dredge the shrimp in the flour mixture and shake off excess.

Arrange paper towels for draining – I like to use a baking sheet covered with one layer of paper towels, then a cooling rack and another layer of paper towels. This way the top layer absorbs oil and the lower layer catches any drips. But hey, it’s your kitchen.

Heat oil to 375 degrees in a large stockpot or fryer. Start off with about a quart and a half, and you may need to add a little bit more with each batch. Carefully drop shrimp into the oil in batches, 2 cups at a time. Adjust with a heat resistant spoon to be sure they do not stick together. Cook 1- 2 minutes. Remove with a spider or strainer and place on paper towels to drain. Let the oil get back up to 375 degrees before adding the next batch.

Serve hot with a squish of lemon and maybe a bit of tartar sauce.

Ingredient origins: Northern shrimp – the waters right outside our door; Flour – Vermont; Panko – unknown; Sea salt – Maine; Seasoning – Maryland; Canola oil – unknown

Greek Style Cod Soup

This week’s Community Supported Fishery catch was cod. We currently have a freezer full of fish cakes and we’ve roasted quite a few fish whole since signing up for the CSF. So I decided to set Wayback Machine to 2006 and go over to my trusty recipe box for ideas. I had worked on this recipe for a while before settling on the right proportion of ingredients.

As you know, soups and stews are great in cold weather. While the traditional players this time of year can be rich and heavy, Greek Style Cod Soup is light, nutritious and satisfying. Seasoned simply with salt, pepper and parsley, the flavor of the fish is allowed to stand on it own.

Greek Style Cod Soup – serves 4- 6

2 quarts water
1 t sea salt
1/2 C olive oil
1/2 C freshly chopped parsley
2 carrots, chopped
2 tomatoes, diced, or 1 1/2 C cherry or grape tomatoes
1/2 yellow onion, diced
2 cloves garlic, sliced
1 large russet potato, peeled and diced
3/4 C white rice
3 lb cod fillets, cut into large 3 – 5″ pieces
sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Bring water to a boil in a large stockpot. Add vegetables, rice, oil and half of the parsley. Bring to a boil, lower heat and simmer, covered for 10 minutes.

Add cod, cover and simmer gently for 20 minutes. It’s important to check on it occasionally be sure the simmer does not become a rapid boil or the fish could fall apart.

Remove from heat, season to taste with salt and pepper. Serve garnished with the remaining parsley.

Ingredient origins: Sea salt – Maine; Olive oil – Italy; Organic parsley – Rhode Island; Organic carrots – California; Tomatoes – Mexico; Onion – California; Potato – unknown; Rice – California; Cod – Atlanic Ocean right outside our door.

Oven Roasted Fillet of Cod

Last night was fish share night for us and we got a lovely whole cod fresh from waters outside our house. Once scaled and filleted we had about 2 lbs of meat. Not bad at all.

Cod is a meaty white fish with a delicate flavor. It lends itself well to a variety of preparations, but I like it simply done to let the meat speak for itself. This recipe uses simply butter, olive oil and lemon juice. We served it with a side of sautéed bok choy.

Oven Roasted Fillet of Cod – serves 4

2 lbs of cod fillets
3 T butter
2 T olive oil
juice of half a lemon
salt

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees and move the rack to the highest level.

Melt butter in a small saucepan over medium heat. Add olive oil and butter and combine. Lightly salt the cod.

Lightly grease a baking sheet and arrange fillets on top. Brush fillets with half of the butter mixture. Roast for 10 minutes. Brush with the butter mixture and bake for another 5 to 10 minutes until the fish just starts to flake.

Serve hot.

Ingredient origins: Cod – the waters off of the lovely New England shore; butter – Maine; Olive oil – Italy; lemon – Mexico

Baked Pollock

This week’s fish share catch was a 30 inch, 4 lb pollock. I’m not a huge fan of filleting fish because it’s a lot of work for a bland result. Like meats, fish cooked bone-in has far more flavor than a boneless fillet. It’s like comparing a piece of whole roasted chicken to a boneless, skinless chicken breast prepared the same way. Meat cooked with the bone in always has more flavor and moisture than boneless meat and the same is true for fish.

I don’t think I’d ever had fish cooked whole until I traveled to Corsica, where I ordered sea bream. It came to the table whole, and the owner of the restaurant kindly demonstrated how to fillet the fish. Filleting a cooked fish is far easier than filleting a raw fish because the meat pulls away from the bone.

This dish is light and delicious without being boring. The pollock takes on the flavors of the basil, garlic and tomato nicely without overpowering the delicate fish.

Pollock Baked in Foil – serves 4 – 6

1 – 4 lb Pollock, gutted and scaled
6-7 cloves of garlic, peeled and halved lenthwise
1 C red onion, sliced
3 – 4 medium tomatoes, sliced
1/4 basil, chiffonaded
3 T butter, sliced thinly

Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.

Remove head behind the large gill. Reserve and freeze for making fish stock later.

Place fish on a large piece of aluminum foil or parchment paper (I used foil this time, but I much prefer parchment). Stuff with one quarter of the onion, tomato, basil and butter. Arrange butter and vegetables around the fish on the aluminum foil. Wrap the fish in the aluminum foil and fold to seal.

Bake on a baking sheet for 1 hour. Remove from oven. Place fish on serving platter and fillet to serve.

Ingredient origins: Pollock – freshly caught from nearby waters; Organic garlic – California; Red onion and tomatoes – Massachusetts; Basil – my kitchen; Butter – Maine.

Tarragon Pollock with Herbed Figs

We are members of a CSF – Community Supported Fishery. It’s similar to a CSA, but instead of produce, it’s fish that comes fresh from the ocean that morning. Whatever is caught is what we get. Today’s catch was pollock.

This dish is similar to meuniere, except I added fresh tarragon to the butter. Tarragon gives the pollock a delicate, earthy flavor. The thyme and rosemary lend savory undertones to the figs, keep them from being too sweet. Overall, the fish and figs combined offered a good balance of flavor.

I served it with a simple salad of Boston lettuce, which was dressed with olive oil, brown rice vinegar and freshly ground salt and pepper.

Pan-Seared Pollock - serves 2

3/4 – 1 lb of Pollock, filleted with the skin on
1 T fresh tarragon, chopped
2 T butter
1/4 C flour
1/2 t salt

Cut the fillet in half, dry it off with a paper towel and dredge it in salt and flour for a light coat. Melt butter in a large skillet until it foams. Add tarragon and swirl to infuse the butter, 15- 30 seconds. Do not let it brown. Place fillets in pan, skin side up and cook on medium high heat for 3 minutes. Turn fillets carefully, cook 6 minutes. If the fish is not cooked through, cover and cook another 3 minutes.

Herbed Figs - serves 2

6 ripe fresh figs, halved
2 T butter
1 tsp fresh rosemary, chopped
1 tsp fresh thyme, chopped

Melt butter over medium heat in small skillet until it foams. Add herbs and swirl to infuse the butter. Place figs cut side down in pan. When butter and juices begin to bubble, turn heat down to low and allow to cook slowly for 15 minutes, turning once or twice. This can be done while the fish cooks.

Boston Lettuce Salad - serves 2

1/2 head of Boston lettuce
drizzle of olive oil
drizzle of brown rice vinegar
2 grinds of salt
2 grinds of pepper

Combine all ingredients in a large bowl. Turn using tongs until leaves are coated. Divide into two bowls and serve.

Ingredient Origins: Pollock – Fresh from the waters outside our door; Tarragon – Massachusetts, Butter – Maine; Flour – Vermont; Salt – Maine; Figs – California; Rosemary and thyme – Massachusetts; Boston lettuce – Massachusetts; Olive oil – Italy; Brown rice vinegar – California; Pepper – India