Perch in brine

Today’s edition is concerned with a fish dish, one that is as simple as it is popular with diners all over the country. It is a recipe that can be made with most fish, but today’s recommendation is perch. It is a fish common to many continents, such as America and Asia, where it has close relatives.

România Internațional, 31.08.2013, 14:00

Today’s edition is concerned with a fish dish, one that is as simple as it is popular with diners all over the country. It is a recipe that can be made with most fish, but today’s recommendation is perch. It is a fish common to many continents, such as America and Asia, where it has close relatives.

The perch is one of the fish most popular with fishermen. You can put it straight on the grill as it is, but the fancy and tastier way of cooking it is by grilling it on a bed of rock salt. This saves you the trouble of scaling it, since after it is cooked in this manner, the scales come off by just wiping the fish clean of salt. However, you do have to be careful while turning it over during grilling, as the meat falls off the bones easily.

This simple dish is made by soaking the grilled fish in a sauce made by boiling vegetables in brine. Set a few tomatoes on the grill, cook them as much as you like, then chop them up. Mix them with a few cloves of garlic chopped finely, seasoned with dried thyme, basil and a couple of green chilies. Top up this mixture with hot brine, then throw in the grilled fish, previously cleaned of the layer of salt it was grilled in. You don’t need to add any salt, as the fish soaks as much as it needs.

Serve with polenta and a dry white wine, and enjoy