Receta Sicillian Grilled Swordfish
Victor and Marcella HazanThere is a sad anniversary this
week. It’s been a year since the world
lost Marcella Hazan, that wonderfully giving Italian food prophet with whom I
struck up a friendship over the internet.
Fortunately, when you are as good as Marcella, your presence in the
kitchen will not go with you. And
fortunately too, Marcella’s partner in life and in the kitchen, Victor Hazan,
has kept Marcella's memory most alive for fans and friends on her Facebook
page. By
complete coincidence, when I was poking around for a recipe for swordfish, what
should appear before me but Ina Garten’s Sicillian Grilled Swordfish recipe which Ina
said was inspired by Marcella. I found it in Ina’s “Barefoot Contessa Foolproof”
(Clarkson Potter 2012). This recipe
certainly keeps up with the title of the book. It’s one of the easiest things I
have cooked all summer. It might take
all of 15 minutes to put together. And
it delivers such fresh and full flavor that I wanted to share it with you. And since we may be heading into the end of
corn season, I wanted to also share an Ina recipe for Confetti Corn. It’s appeared here before. But it is perfect
with this dish.
Swordfish
is found in the local waters surrounding on Long Island as you can see from this
illustration of this magnificent fish.
In fact, judging from its price this summer, it’s abundant in these
waters. Its meaty white flesh makes it a
kind of seafood steak. Unlike tuna,
which seems to thrive on being merely seared, to me swordfish tastes best when
it is cooked through--to a uniform whiteness from center to sides. I generally like to cook swordfish that is about 1 inch thick. Ina’s Marcella-inspired rendition calls for swordfish that's a 1/2 inch thick but I used slightly thicker fish and just cooked it a little longer. If you use a grill pan, you can actually see if the fish is cooked through by monitoring the sides. Ina's recipe uses a sauce that
closely resembles a salad dressing. The
fish is cooked, then pricked with the tines of a fork. The sauce is then poured over and the fish is allowed to rest for 5
minutes. Peppery baby arugula then tops
the fish and the sauce does double duty as dressing for the arugula. The sweetness of the corn, onions and red
peppers in Ina’s Confetti corn struck me as a great side dish to serve with the
fish’s lemon-y tartness. This would make
a perfect weeknight dinner but don’t let that stop you from making this
weekend. Especially since that corn at
the farm stand isn’t going to be there much longer. Here are the recipes.
Recipe for Sicillian Swordfish from
Ina Garten inspired by Marcella Hazan This recipe serves 6 however I
made it for two and cut the sauce down by half.
It takes 15 minutes to make. 5 mins Prep, 5 minutes to cook and 5
minutes to absorb its lemon-y sauce.
2
tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
2
teaspoons minced fresh oregano leaves or 1 teaspoon dried oregano
Pinch
of crushed red pepper flakes
Kosher
salt and freshly ground black pepper
6
(1/2-inch-thick) swordfish steaks (5 to 6 ounces each)
1.
Light a charcoal grill or preheat a gas or stovetop grill until very hot.
2.
For the sauce, whisk together the lemon juice, olive oil, oregano, red pepper
flakes, 1 tablespoon salt, and 1 teaspoon black pepper. Set aside.
3.
When the grill is ready, sprinkle the fish with salt and pepper and cook over
medium-high heat for 2 minutes on one side, then turn and cook for 1 to 2
minutes on the other side until almost cooked through.
4. Remove to a flat
dish, prick holes in the fish with the tines of a fork, and pour the lemon
sauce over the fish while its still hot. Sprinkle liberally with salt and
pepper, cover with aluminum foil, and allow to rest for 5 minutes.
5.
When ready to serve, place the swordfish on dinner plates or a serving platter,
pile the arugula on top, drizzle with the sauce from the fish, and sprinkle
with the grated lemon zest. Serve warm.
Recipe adapted from Ina
Garten’s Confetti Corn from “Barefoot Contessa Back to Basics (Clarkson Potter
2008). Total
Time: 30 minutes.
Prep 15 mins. Cooking Time 15 mins. Serves 6.
2
- tablespoons good olive oil
- 1/2
- cup chopped red or white onion
- 1 red
- bell pepper, 1/2-inch diced
- 2
- tablespoons unsalted
- butter
- Kernels
- cut from 5 ears yellow or white corn (4 cups)
- 1
- 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1
- teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1. Heat
- the olive oil over medium heat in a large saute pan. Add the
- onion
- and saute for 5 minutes, until the onion is soft. Stir in the bell
- pepper
- and saute for 2 more minutes. Add the butter to the pan and allow it to melt. Over medium
- heat, add the corn, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring occasionally, for 5 to
7 minutes, until the corn is just cooked through.Season to taste and serve.