Seared Red Snapper with Sweet Potatoes and Christophene, with Creole Sauce
Red snapper fillets are seared and cooked from the skin side only. Three kinds of potatoes are served with this dish, including white potatoes which are carved into mushroom shapes.
Ingredients
- Creole Sauce
- Green Onions - 4, green part only, julienned
- Red Bell Peppers - 4, peeled, seeded, deribbed, and minced
- Lime Juice - 4 limes
- Scotch bonnet peppers (habanero) - 1
- Extra-Virgin Olive Oil - 2 cups
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Vegetables
- White Potatoes - 4, skinned and carved into mushroom shapes
- Yellow Caribbean Sweet Potatoes - 4, peeled and cut into large chunks
- Yams - 4, tourneed (see Basics)
- Unsalted Butter - 8 tablespoons (1 stick)
- Christophenes - 4, cut in matchstick julienne
- Red snapper fillets - 4, 7-ounce, skin on
- Lemon Juice - 1 lemon
- Freshly ground black pepper to taste
- Sea salt to taste
- Chervil - 4 sprigs
- Curry oil (see Basics)
Instructions
To make the creole sauce: Combine the onion, bell pepper, lime juice, Scotch bonnet, olive oil, salt, and pepper in a non-aluminum bowl and marinate for at least 1 hour. Remove and discard the Scotch bonnet.
To prepare the vegetables: Place the white potatoes in a saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium, cover pan, and cook until just soft when pierced with the point of a knife, 6 - 8 minutes. Remove from heat and drain. Add 2 tablespoons of butter and cover. Set aside.
Place the sweet potatoes in a saucepan, cover with water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce heat to medium, cover the pan, and cook until just soft, about 10 minutes. Remove from heat and drain. Add 3 tablespoons of butter and cover. Set aside.
Place the tourneed yams in a saute pan, cover with water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook 5 minutes and drain. Add 3 tablespoons of butter and saute over medium-low heat for 5 minutes.
Place the christophene in a saute pan, cover with water, and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Cook 3 minutes and drain. Add 2 tablespoons curry oil, toss, and saute over medium-low heat for 3 minutes.
To prepare the fish: Cut each fish fillet in 3 pieces. Heat a non-stick saute pan over medium-high heat and place the fish in the pan, skin-side down. Cook for 3 - 4 minutes, until opaque, using a spatula to keep the fish loose on the pan. Do not turn over. Season the top with lemon juice, pepper, and sea salt.
To serve: Mash the sweet potatoes and butter. Place a 4-inch ring mold in the center of each plate and fill with sweet potato. Strew the plates with creole sauce. Lift off the mold. Place 3 pieces of snapper over each potato mold. Arrange the yams and christophene around the plates. Drizzle with curry oil and garnish with chervil.
