Barbequed Sea Bass with Mojo Verde
Months ago, when I first started this blog, I said that I would sometimes talk about the food that features in my books. That is because they are often set in a far away place where the food and the customs are different. They are almost always set in places that I have visited; places where I have discovered new recipes and tried new food. Traveling has broadened my palate and because I bring a lot of my travel experiences into my books, my hero and heroine often eat a meal that I, too, have enjoyed.
Today I am going to revisit my book Accident-Prone Avalon Books to talk about the meal that the heroine, Alex, ate on her arrival in Tenerife. I have already posted the recipe for Papas Arrugadas (Canarian Potatoes). Barbequed Sea Bass with Mojo Verde was served with them, as well as a tomato salad. Even better, the hero, Matt, cooked the fish over an open barbecue.
One of my best memories is sitting in an open air restaurant at lunchtime watching the waves curl onto the shore while I ate freshly grilled sardines, papas arrugadas (the tiny Canarian boiled potatoes) and salad, and drank chilled white wine. Fabulous. It was a lunchtime that lasted about two hours!
In Accident-Prone the barbecued fish with a green salsa sauce that features is a simple meal that can be found everywhere on Tenerife. I didn’t specify the fish in the book. I just said that it was barbecued. But the following dish is probably the one that Cristina prepared, and that Alex enjoyed so much.
Barbequed Sea Bass with Mojo Verde
2 tablespoon lemon juice
2 teaspoon olive oil
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
2 bay leaves
1 kilo fresh sea bass
Preheat an outdoor barbecue to a medium heat and lightly oil the cooking grate (or an indoor grill or a frying pan if the weather is bad!)
In a small bowl stir together lemon juice, olive oil, salt, pepper and bay leaves.
Rub fish with mixture inside and out. A bunch of additional herbs can be added to taste.
Cook the fish over medium heat for 8 to 10 minutes, flipping halfway through.
Fish is done when it flakes easily with a fork.
Serve on a large platter with a bowl of mojo verde.
Mojo Verde
Ingredients
4 garlic cloves, peeled
1/4 teaspoon of fresh ground hot red pepper, such as cayenne
1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon of dried thyme
handful of flat-leaf parsley, coarse stems removed
bunch of cilantro, coarse stems removed
4 tablespoons of olive oil
3 tablespoons of white wine vinegar
1/2 teaspoon of salt
1/4 cup of water
Put all of the ingredients in a food processor and blend it into a sauce. Adjust the seasonings
Even better if eaten outdoors with the sound of the sea whispering across the sand only yards away.
If you barbecue it and pair it with canarian potatoes and a tomato salad, then I would love to know if you enjoyed it. I know Alex and Matt did!
Papas arrugadas with mojo picon
I didn’t realize how much food featured in my books until I reread Accident-Prone (Avalon Books Dec 2011). I talk about it quite a lot during the early chapters when the different characters are getting to know one another. And one of the first meals that I have written about is when the heroine (Alex) is entertained on her first evening on Tenerife. Her hostess serves fish dressed with a green salsa sauce, tiny baked potatoes and a tomato salad. I will talk about the fish another time but today I want to introduce you to Papas Arrugadas(Canarian potatoes). Why? Well because they are served everywhere on the Island, they seem to go with everything, and they are absolutely delicious.
I first ate them at a birthday meal arranged especially for me by friends, and then I just carried on eating them for the rest of my holiday on the Island. Of course small Canarian potatoes are best but I have discovered that others will do almost as good a job. This recipe serves 6-8 people and should be served with mojo picon (pepper sauce) This sauce is a Canary Island staple and goes with just about everything, especially papas arrugadas
Papas Arrugadas (Canarian Potatoes)
2 kg small new potatoes
1.5 ltr water
coarse sea salt
Clean the potatoes well, leaving the skin on
Place them in a saucepan and cover with water and salt
Boil for 15-20 minutes until potatoes are just cooked
Drain and return to same saucepan with no liquid
Place saucepan full of potatoes over moderate heat and turn them 2 or 3 times
The salt will stick to the potatoes and they will become ‘wrinkly’
Mojo Picon (Pepper Sauce)
5 garlic cloves
1 teaspoon cumin seed
2 small dried chilies
salt
3 tablespoons breadcrumbs
1/2 teaspoon paprika
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
4 tablespoons olive oil
1/2 cup water
Blend cumin, garlic, and chilies with salt.
Add paprika, vinegar and oil, and continue to blend.
Add bread crumbs
Gradually add water until desired consistency is reached.
The sauce will keep well in a sealed jar in a refrigerator. Serve at room temperature.
Happy eating!