Crispy Skin Rockfish with Ginger Coconut Soup
Recipe submitted by: Eric Keener
This meal is dedicated to my buddy Adam and his family. Adam is a STUD of a human. He has devoted the last 7 years to living in South East Asia to document and combat war crimes and tend to those families and children that are stuck in the crossfire on the frontlines. We love when he and his family come to visit us as much almost as I love going over there to work with him in the jungles. On this visit, I got to take him spearfishing for his first time. He did stellar! He dove 20+ feet, got his first fish on a pole spear and only puked a handful of times (even after anti-nausea meds!). He said he is hooked! In honor of their visit, I made a Thai meal from some of the fish we shot. This meal is easy as they aren’t many fancy techniques, but it does require a focus on timing and making sure you have everything prepped ahead of time.
NOTE ON TIMING: The rice and the soup can be started around the same time followed by the fish once the others have began to cook.
Coconut Soup
1 can full fat coconut milk
3 C fish stock
1 tbsp red thai curry paste
1 bunch scallions, sliced thin
1 tbsp minced ginger
1 stalk lemongrass (remove upper and outer leaves then slice lengthwise)
2 Fresno chilis, minced
2 tbsp fish sauce
2 tbsp lime juice
¼ C chopped cilantro
In a large soup pan on medium low heat, add the fish stock, lemon grass, peppers, onion and ginger. After 15 minutes of simmering, add all of the other ingredients and turn heat to low. Continue to cook until the fish and rice are done. Once you are ready to plate the meal, strain all the ingredients from the soup (or leave them in if you want additional texture and flavor. My goal for this meal is for the fish flavor to be the highlight so I remove the ingredients).
Garlic Rice
2/3 C jasmin rice
1 1/3 C water
3 cloves minced garlic
1 tbsp butter
Pinch of salt
In medium sauce pan, boil water and stir in rice, salt, butter and garlic then cover and reduce heat to low. Simmer until all water is absorbed – adding more as needed until rice is tender. Once it’s nearly cooked, put heat on medium high and let all the water evaporate. Let a crust develop on the bottom then remove from heat.
Rock Fish
1 whole rock fish, properly dispatched, scaled and gutted
3/4 C fresh basil leaves
1 tsp fresh ginger, minced/grated on zester
1 tbsp peanut oil
1 tbsp sesame oil
2 tbsp fish sauce
1 tbsp brown sugar
3 cloves garlic, minced
1 Fresno chili, sliced or diced
Yellow bell pepper, diced (remove seeds)
1 tbsp rice vinegar
1 tbsp water
Several whole cherry tomatoes
Prepare the fish by patting all surfaces dry with paper towels. Stuff the belly of your fish with basil, make 3 shallow, vertical slices in each side of the fish and sprinkle with salt. Set your oven to 375 degrees F to preheat. In a high-heat pan (like cast iron or carbon steel), heat the pan over fairly high heat (8.5/10). Add the oils, wait 30 seconds and add the fish. After 45 seconds, flip the fish for 45 more seconds and remove from pan (turn pan down to medium heat and retain the oil). Place the fish on a baking tray lined with tinfoil and roll the edges to create a shallow boat around it. Drizzle the fish sauce over the fish and layer lemons on top.
Bake the fish in the oven for at least 25 minutes or until flakey all the way through.
While your fish is baking, add the peppers, ginger and garlic to the pan you just fried the fish in and cook until softened. Add tomatoes, rice vinegar, brown sugar, water and stir. Allow to simmer until it thickens to desired consistency (you want it fairly thick). Once your fish is done, remove it from oven and immediately plate and serve.
Plating
Add a firmly packed mound of rice crust side up in the bottom of a large bowl. Gently pour your strained soup around the edge, careful to not displace rice. Place a few cherry tomatoes around edges of rice in the soup. Add the fish on top of the rice mound. Top the fish with the sweet and spicy peppers and chopped basil. Add a slice/wedge of lemon and serve this bowl of epic yumminess to your tribe!
“Than hai im, na khrap!” (Eat until you’re full!)