Both of us — my wife Kaisari and I — love fish. I adore steak, too, but one problem with steak and other kinds of meats like goat or lamb (as Muslims we don’t eat pork) is that they have to be good quality to be eaten and enjoyed. Even mediocre fish, on the other hand, can be enjoyed, to a reasonable degree. For a person my age, chewing through tough, stringy meat is murder to the teeth!
One fish negative, however, is its price. But when you factor in that there is no waste, and little or no ado in cleaning, plus the fact that it cooks up in next to no time, the small extra margin is well within our comfort level. And my wife is adept at juggling store sales, including at Publix and often at Costco.
The other day swai (aka basa), one of our favorite fish, was on sale at Publix, our favorite store. Much of the time she cooks these fillets, which include tilapia also, in our desi style (i.e. indigenous style, Indian for us). Once I saw her unloading the frozen swai packet that morning, I had a sudden hankering for the way our old dinner cook back home, Tipu Mia, would prepare such delicate fish — in a fragrant white butter sauce, sometimes served cold or occasionally hot.
Kaisari inodded yes to my entreaty, but said she had to do it quickly since she was going somewhere in the afternoon. Despite the adage in our Urdu language that “a hasty job is the devil’s job,” such impromptu sallies often yield surprisingly pleasant results. Chalk it up to serendipity, but such outcomes are not so rare in the kitchen.
She had run out of cream, but then she opened the fridge and there was the jar of excess coconut milk she had saved a couple of days before. And when she opened the spice cabinet, there lined up right in front were the bottles of McCormick Grill Mates spice mixes that the company’s PR agent Emily Taubenblatt had just sent to correct my misnaming of the company that made them.
The first Grill Mates bottle she hit was the Smoky Montreal Steak, and that’s what she used to flavor the fish fillets, off-label use though it was — in a delicate sauce. Then she thickened the sauce with coconut milk instead of the missing cream.
When I tasted the result, it hit me like a symphony of tastes and flavors. For a while, I marveled at the haunting, smoky fragrance that was like a plaintive flute floating in from a distance, and the light yet thick sauce that gave the delicate fish a vibrant complexity in the mouth, as I took it with a small bite of perfectly cooked basmati. Wonder! Was the devil trying to tempt me?
I don’t know if the recipe I cajoled out of my wife later will live up to my buildup. They often don’t, perhaps because some soupcon of ingredients was not recalled and recorded correctly, or maybe the taste then was heightened by some ephemeral events. But you won’t know that until you try. Its beauty is its simplicity and speed.
FISH FILLETS IN “SMOKY” WHITE SAUCE
3 to 4 fish fillets, such as swai or tilapia
2 to 3 teaspoons McCormick Grill Mates Montreal Steak Seasoning
4 to 5 green onions, finely sliced, including some of green part
3 to 4 tablespoons butter, cut into pats
3 to 4 tablespoons good quality canned coconut milk
Thaw, wash and pat the fillets dry. Sprinkle the fillets on both sides with about 1 1/2 teaspoons of the McCormick spice mix and set them aside. Use a bit more if needed. Wash, pat dry and slice the scallions thinly, including some of the green parts towards the bulbs; set aside.
In a large nonstick skillet over medium to medium-high heat, melt the butter. Stir in the sliced scallions and cook, stirring constantly for 30 seconds or so. Gently add the fillets and cook, stirring occasionally, for about 2 to 3 minutes per side; turn carefully so as not to break the fillets. Or, cut them diagonally in half, before adding to the pan in two batches, adjusting the other ingredients accordingly.
Add the coconut milk to the pan along with the remaining spice mix. Cook, stirring occasionally and turning to coat the fillets on both sides, until done, about 2 to 3 minutes more per side. Do not overcook the fish or it will become dry and tough. If the sauce needs to be thickened, take the fish out before cooking more.
Serve the fillets with the sauce and the cooked scallions spooned over them. Basmati rice, sauteed green beans, asparagus or even small pasta can be served on the side.
Note: On these on-the-go recipes, measurements are “recalled” later. So treat them as approximations. My thanks to Ms. Taubenblatt in New York City for the gift.
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