Who wants to spend time in the kitchen when summer comes around?
When planning warm weather meals, I have a simple strategy. First, I want recipes that don’t take long to prepare. If the cooking time goes past 30 minutes, I’ll probably look for something else.
Next, the recipe should be light. When temperatures rise, everyone’s tastes seem to run toward lighter, livelier foods. That’s why seafood is so great in summer. And most seafood recipes are also lower in fat and calories.
Along with lightness, I want very lively flavors in summertime dishes. I try to choose seasonings as bright as the sunshine–fresh herbs, garlic, tomatoes, citrus juice or sharp pickled seasonings like capers or olives–that provide a big bang of flavor with little effort.
Finally, I especially like it if the recipe yields delicious leftovers. Those leftovers are a real bonus if they taste just as good cold the next day.
You might just think so many requirements for an ideal summer dish are a tall order. But you’ll find them all in this recipe for Veracruz-style red snapper fillets with tomatoes, capers and olives.
This dish comes from the main city on Mexico’s Gulf Coast–or, more precisely, from the fishing town of Boca del Rio, just south of it, where they cook whole huachinango, red snapper, in a similar way. I’ve simplified the recipe by using fillets instead of a whole fish. Feel free to substitute other fresh, firm, fairly mild-tasting fish fillets, such as grouper, sea bass or swordfish.
One glance at the ingredients list tells you how easy it is. Apart from the fish, there are only a handful of ingredients most people already have in the pantry or can find easily in any market, and you don’t have to do any more prep than opening a few cans and jars, followed by some quick knife work.
The dish tastes delicious cold too. So I’ll often make extra and store it in the refrigerator. The next day for lunch, I drizzle extra-virgin olive oil over the cold fish in sauce and serve it with a salad.
Veracruz-style red snapper fillets with tomatoes, capers and olives
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time: 20 minutes
Yield: 6 servings
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
6 cloves garlic, peeled, thinly sliced
4 green onions, thinly sliced
1 jalapeno, halved, seeded, minced
1 cup drained pitted green olives, sliced
1/4 cup drained capers
2 cans (14 1/2 ounces each) diced tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
Freshly ground pepper
6 fresh red snapper fillets, 1-inch thick
2 tablespoons chicken broth or fish broth
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley
Lemon or lime wedges
1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add 2 tablespoons of the olive oil; add the garlic. Cook, stirring, until garlic begins to sizzle, about 1 minute. Add the green onions, jalapeno, olives and capers; cook, stirring, 1 minute. Stir in the tomatoes, 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and pepper to taste. Cook, stirring occasionally, until mixture reduces slightly and smells fragrant, about 10 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, season fillets on both sides with remaining 1/2 teaspoon of the salt and pepper to taste. Heat another skillet over medium-high heat; add the remaining 2 tablespoons of the olive oil. Add the fillets; cook until golden, 5 minutes. Turn carefully with a spatula; cook until the fish is firm and opaque in the center when pierced with the tip of a small knife, about 3 minutes. Remove the fillets from the skillet to a heated platter; cover with foil.
3. Pour fat from the skillet. Transfer the tomato mixture into the skillet in which you cooked the snapper. Add the broth; stir, scraping up pan deposits. Heat to a simmer over medium-high heat; cook, stirring occasionally, until sauce thickens, about 1 minute more. Transfer fillets to serving plates. Spoon the sauce over the fish; garnish with cilantro and lemon wedges.
Nutrition information per serving:
362 calories, 37% of calories from fat, 14 g fat, 2 g saturated fat, 80 mg cholesterol, 9 g carbohydrates, 47 g protein, 1,165 mg sodium, 2 g fiber
