Rotbarschfilet with a nice little sauce..

Have not posted any recipes for a very long time. This one is wortha go.
I have not got a poncy french name for this atall, but if you fancy it, call it "Rascasse du nord, a la Cote-du-Sud" for a nice sounding name. Not alot to do with the cote du sud, but as its rascasse du nord, it adds a very vague twist to the title.

Basically, this rotbarsch is sold everywhere here, and all you need to know is that it is a firm white fleshed fish with good boneless fillets. Its got loads of names but I think "ocean perch" is closest. Perhaps a fisherman would know.
Frankly, who cares what its called in English, its a great tasting, almost sweet white meat, and keep its texture well. And its even sold in shitty Tenglemann.

This is a great sauce for it though, easy to make and very tasty. Its a tomato and courgette based sauce, and believe me, I am not a great fan of tomato sauces. They always remind me of crappy jars of pasta sauce in England, and I hate that stuff. This sauce though has a really different flavour, and one that is quite elusive.

For 2 persons:
2 nice white fish fillets, try Rotbarsch or be evil and use cod.
1 big spanish onion
1 courgette
4 cloves garlic
1 red pepper
Some tomato passata - cartons cost about 50c, you'll need one probably, or two if you love lots of sauce.
Pernod - optional
Small pinch of Fennel Seeds (optional, but they are widely available)
Pinch of coriander seeds (again optional)
Black pepper
Herbs - dried fresh, whatever you fancy. Lots of fresh parsley always adds a fresh edge though
1 Lemon

Chop the onions really roughly, big pieces, and slice the courgette (at an angle to make nicer looking slices) fairly thickly. Chop the garlic roughly. This is a quick rough old sauce, so nothing cut too fine. Chop the red pepper, again big bits. TRy and make the pieces uniform size if you want.

Heat up a pan, and add a gooood glug of olive oil. Add the onion, stir through once or twice to coat with oil, then add the courgette and pepper, and if using, the coraiander and fennel seeds. Stir fry for a few minutes, but do not let it brown.

Add the garlic, and stir fry another couple of minutes. Now, if you have some, add a glug of pernod, or vermouth would be good, maybe sherry, or even white wine. Evaporate it, then add the herbs and enough passata to cover. Simmer for 20 minutes or so, then season with salt, ALOT of pepper, and the juice from half the lemon.

The Sauce is ready now, but will benefit from sitting for a while to improve the flavour. Thats handy, 'cos the fish now has to be cooked.

The fish can be steamed, baked, fried, grilled, whatever. I would suggest dredging the fillets in seasoned flour, and frying in butter. If you wanna make it REALLY easy, simply cut the fillets into big pieces, put in a casserole dish, add the sauce, and bake (covered in foil or a lid) for 20 minutes. Could also add some prawns before baking. Lovely.
Anyway, serve the fish with the sauce and some lemon wedges from the left over half lemon, and maybe some buttered fettucini or boiled spuds and a green salad.

Always nice to have a bit of fish on a friday, and gentlemen, this one is so easy to cook, that you should treat your woman to a nice evening and a cooked meal. PM me if you need more detailed instructions, presentation advice, some advice on wine choices, additional really easy courses if you really wanna go to town, whatever

Cheers love - that sounds mmmmmmmmmmmmm.

Cheers Don - I love fish, but I am always unsure what to do with it. I generally buy salmon/rainbow trout (mmmmm) and pop them in a tin foil parcel with lemon/lime and fresh herbs and pop it in the oven for 15 mins. Its lovely, but I could do with more inspiration in the olde fish department, so this wee recipe is cracking!