Redroots Kitchen - Easy Weeknight Meals

Oven baked fish fillets in Creole Sauce

Here at Redroots we believe food should be crafted with care but not overly fussy. Our sweet spot lands somewhere at the intersection of simple and delicious. This particular recipe is definitely simple AND delicious so it certainly meets our stringent gustatory requirements! Not to mention that it features many ingredients you most likely have on hand, making it a great choice for a weeknight meal.

A seasons worth of deliciousness

Having already eaten all of the fish I’ve hooked, speared or otherwise convinced to jump into my cooler over the course of the previous summer, I went ahead and used some Alaskan cod that I had left in the deep freeze. However, any firm fleshed fish would do, (think grouper, tilefish, hogfish, mahi and any of their delicious ilk). If for some inexplicable reason you have tilapia in your fridge you can use that too. The sauce is a riff on your basic Creole sauce give or take a few ingredients. Honestly this sauce is good enough to make old flip-flops delicious so feel free to get creative.

Clockwise from top left:  sliced yellow peppers, basil, stuffed olives and  white onion

Before you go about chopping:

-        Grease a baking dish that is large enough to hold the number of fillets you’re making, set aside

 -    Preheat oven to 425°F (Kitchen tip: if you have a large enough toaster over you can use that instead of your conventional oven)

For the fish:

3 - 4  Firm white fish fillets (Grouper, Tilefish, Hogfish, Mahi, Cod etc.)

Season liberally with Salt + pepper and sweet paprika to taste, set aside

For the sauce:

½ Lg. yellow onion, sliced thin

1 yellow, red or green bell pepper, sliced thin

3 garlic cloves – minced

1 16oz. can chopped tomatoes

1 8oz. can tomato sauce

bunch basil leaves, chopped

½ cup green olives

¼ cup capers

½ cup water or stock

1 Tsp. Sweet paprika

few dashes Worcestershire sauce

Salt + pepper to taste

Oilve oil

-  Heat a large skillet over medium heat, let it get hot.

-  Once it comes to heat, add your olive oil, enough to generously coat the     

   bottom of the skillet. Wait until oil heats up.

-  add in peppers and onions, season with salt and cook until translucent.

-  add minced garlic and basil, stir and toss until well coated.

- add in the tomatoes, olives, capers, a few good dashes Worcestershire sauce and stock.    - Taste and season with S+P as needed and wait until it starts to bubble. Taste again, if its   

   missing anything trust your palate and go for it!

- Set aside.

The set up

-        Ladle ½ of the sauce into the greased baking dish

-        Lay the seasoned fillets on top and cover with remaining sauce

-        Put in the oven for 20 minutes or until fish is done. Fillet should be white in its thickest part, not translucent. If it needs more cooking add another 5 minutes in the oven. 

-        Serve with rice, quinoa or parsley potatoes (recipe below)

Parsley Potatoes

6 red potatoes peeled

Olive oil

Minced garlic

Bunch flat leaf parsley chopped

Kosher salt + pepper

- Steam or boil your potatoes in lightly salted water for 20 – 30 mins till done

- Combine Olive Oil, garlic, parsley and salt & pepper in a bowl. Stir and make a paste

- drain off potatoes, place in a bowl and toss with parsley mixture, serve. 

Smothered beneath that rich sauce are some delicious fillets