Cooking fish is not always difficult, even for the novice cook. Μany people, however, think it is much too hard to make well, and it is easier to forgo the fish at home and just eat it at restuarants. Well, we have not necessarily mastered cooking fish, but I think we are getting better at some types of fish and cooking methods. Mastering the cooking process would mean that each and every time the fish we cook is perfect. Even excellent cooks don't get it right always. We were lucky enough (thank God!) this time that it was turned out real good! So, what did we do?
We did a few things that you, too, could do at home with very little training, and very little effort. You just need some time and a few ingredients. We are not providing an absolute recipe for this day. Instead, we have decided to share with you a process, a method, even an insight. Today is a day that we will, hopefully, explain how to fry the fish the Greek way, and this can be applied to all kinds of fish for a quick and easy meal.
To start, we used haddock. It was what we had in the freezer for the 25th of March, and for Palm Sunday, we will show you the traditional salt cod called Μπακαλιάρος (bak-a-l-ya-ros). That ends up being a very similar process, but with a different kind of fish. We chose haddock today because, as mentioned, we had that in the freezer, and because the whole family likes the light flavour and meaty texture of the haddock fish loins.
First, we cut the fish loins in half to get twenty-four small pieces. Each piece, prior to cutting them in half, was approximately 4 ounces (about 100 g) in weight. We figured they wouldn't break in half when we were turning the pieces in the frying pan, and they made for a nice size for snack or lunch tomorrow (see picture below).
We got the flour ready by adding salt and pepper to it. We cannot tell you how much flour to use because that depends on how much fish you have. We used almost two cups of flour for the 12 fish loins that we had. Although, the cut fish pieces totalled twenty-four, we still had only 12 loins for 6 people. We also patted dry the fish loins so they were not dripping wet (for when we wanted to put them in the flour), but they were simply moist.
To the flour, we added the salt and pepper-- it was enough pepper to see it throughout the flour when mixed, and enough salt that we could see on top of the pile of pepper. You could probably add other seasonings to the flour like oregano, Old Bay Seasoning, thyme, paprika, or something else. We like the basic nature of salt and pepper because it never interferes with the flavour of the fish, and is likely on hand in almost every kitchen.
We took each piece of fish and dredged it in the flour. That means that we dropped the fish in the bowl of flour, moved the flour around to cover the piece of fish, and then lifted the fish and shook off the excess flour. Then, we set the piece aside for a minute to make sure that the flour would adhere to the fish well. After waiting for a minute, we dipped each piece again into the flour to make sure it was fully coated and completely covered on every side, including the thin sides (see photo below).
Then, it was time to fry the fish. Use enough oil to cover the bottom of the pan and to reach the same height as the fish. Make sure that the oil is hot enough before starting to cook. We know, you may have bigger fish to fry, but how do you know when the oil is ready for frying? Well, we used a shallow pan. With this, we were able to use a little less oil. You will know that the oil is hot enough in a couple of ways. First, you could sprinkle a bit of flour in the oil, and if you hear a "tttsssssssss" " when you sprinkle a little dash of flour into the oil, then you know the oil is hot enough. You will also see a ripple effect pattern in the oil (like the picture below) building on the bottom of the pan. We started with one piece to make sure that the oil would not become too cool after one piece. We took the coated fish pieces, shook off the excess and drippy parts of flour, and then gently lay the fish in the hot oil.
Let the fish cook for a few minutes -- about seven. You will know that it is time to turn the fish to the second side when you start seeing the brown colour coming up the side of the fish. We try to flip the fish only once so we don't break it, nor do we fuss with it too much. This does not mean that you should walk away completely, you should just keep a casual eye on the colour after about 5 minutes because it will cook quickly after five minutes. Once you see the brown edges, turn the pieces of fish to the second side.
Carefully turn the fish to the second side. See the lovely colour? That crispy brown is what we are going for, and the best way to do that is with hot oil and enough flour on the fish. And you can see the pepper covering the fish -- that's delicious! If you are using a different seasoning, then likely that will show, too!
Fry the fish and turn it only one time. Note the wonderful browning!
When the second side is cooked, after about four or five minutes on the second side, drain the fish on some paper towels -- even a cloth towel will work here. It is a matter of letting the food drip the excess oil onto a towel, and for it to "dry" before serving. You can do that with paper towels, cloth towels, or even by using a cooling rack on top of a cookie sheet. This way would mean you have a cake cooling rack that you place on top of a parchment paper lined cookie sheet. The parchment paper is on the cooling rack, the cooling rack is on the cookie sheet and the fried fish goes on the cooling rack. It's a little more environmentally friendly.
You will see the colour of the fish change as it sits. It will go from shiny, oily brown to a more subdued, even brown colour. The shine will disappear as the oil drains from the fish. Some folks may want to flip the fish as it dries, or perhaps they will put it in a warming/holding oven. That's fine if you feel better, but it is completely unnecessary. The warming oven is a nice idea, but not for very long. You don't want to dry out the fish. And, if you cover the fish with foil or plastic wrap, it will get soggy. That's not good. It is better just to let the fried fish sit at room temperature until you are ready to serve it. This is a dish that many of us make moments before eating. That way, it is fresh and you do not have to worry about what to do with it.
If you want, you can cover each layer of fish pieces with another set of paper towels and press down so that more oil will come out of the piece. These are more personal preferences rather than necessary steps. We set our fish on the paper towels, finished cooking the rest, and called it done. It's simple, straight forward, and easy to clean up afterwards.
Serve the fish with your favourite sides. We included a nice salad, greens (horta) some warmed pita bread, lemon wedges, and we ended up making skordalia, too (not pictured). It was a well balanced meal with a lot of lovely flavours coming through the fish, the salad, and even the greens were flavourful. The overall meal, we feel, was well balanced, light, and very delightful for a celebration day. Compared to the fish at our Church (which was quite good - using a different fish (fillet of sole) and preparation method (baked), our home-made version turned out delicious!
We know by keeping the simple salt, pepper, and flour breading, we have not challenged the flavours to compete or to overwhelm any of the fish. We have not overwhelmed ourselves, either, by making a lengthy process to get dinner on the table for everyone. We simplified and stayed with the basics, just like our ancestors did. Greeks are known for many things, and fried fish is definitely one to be thrilled about knowing how to make. It's easier than you think, and we hope to have simplified it for everyone to try at least once -- or twice. We will revisit this topic (fish during Great Lent) one more time -- on Palm Sunday! Until then, "Kali orexi!"
Mark 1:16-20
New American Standard Bible (NASB)
16 As He was going along by the Sea of Galilee, He saw Simon and Andrew, the brother of Simon, casting a net in the sea; for they were fishermen.
17 And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”
18Immediately they left their nets and followed Him.
19 Going on a little farther, He saw [a]James the son of Zebedee, and John his brother, who were also in the boat mending the nets. 20 Immediately He called them; and they left their father Zebedee in the boat with the hired servants, and went away [b]to follow Him.
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