Mountain Cat
Guru
- Joined
- 12 Apr 2019
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- 3,130
- Location
- Hilltowns of Massachusetts
- Website
- goatsandgreens.wordpress.com
For the Feast of the Seven Fishes:
Inspiration source is Cooking with Nonna's Salad recipe for seven fishes. You can find hers at Seven Fishes Seafood Salad, and there's a link to a video as well.
Her fish: Shrimp, Calamari (Squid), Scungilli (Conch), Scallops, Baccala (Salt Cod), Mussels, Pulpo (Octopus). All but the last were simmered separately in seasoned water.
My fish: Shrimp, Calamari, Scallops, Mussels, Little Neck Clams, Salmon, Eel. I could not find all the fish she used, and in any case I really don't care for baccala/salt cod, and had no intention of using it. I also prepared some of the fish differently than she.
A Salad of the Seven Fishes
The quantities of seafood in this recipe are what I personally used - adapt to your own desires and needs. The scallops were very pricy when I shopped, so that's why I used so few of them.
In a cooking pot, put 1/2 to 2/3rds cup of dry white wine. Bring to a boil. Add the mussels and the little necks. Cover until the liquid returns at least to a goodly simmer. If you are multiplying this recipe, you may want to cook the mussels and the clams consecutively, as the clams will take longer to cook and open up. Since I had so few after removing the uncooperative ones, I did them together, periodically checking for when the shellfish would open. Scoop them up with a slotted spoon or a small spider device as they open.
Any that don't open, discard. They're also dead, or at least arrived into that pot deceased. They should open at least a good 3/8ths an inch or a lot better. Some really small mussels don't have the strength to fully open their shells, so take that into account. So, a good 3/8ths an inch. Or, more.
Remove the meat from the shells, toss out the shells, and reserve the meat. Strain the broth through multiple layers of cheesecloth or (better yet) muslin, to reserve the broth, and to eliminate sand and grit. (No, it won't appear in this recipe, but great to reserve for seafood stock.)
For the shrimp: Add, cook about 3-5 minutes, and depending on size, no more than that. Shrimp easily overcook and turn either mushy or dry. Indeed, if you Pull them out of the water in the top of that double boiler. Run under cold water for about 30 seconds. Reserve.
For the squid: Add, cook two minutes or a little less, NO MORE. Squid easily toughens. We don't need "rubber band" food here! Pull them out of the water in the top of that double boiler. Drench under cold water for about 30 seconds. Reserve.
For the scallops: pat dry. Make sure your skillet is HOT. This is the other factor that will help you brown your scallops. Set the skillet at medium high, add the scallops, and flip them after two-three minutes. Cook another two, check to see how they look (ranges all cook differently), remove to a paper towel to absorb any grease.
For the salmon: There are various thicknesses in a salmon fillet. Cut accordingly, in longer slabs, and pan fry after you remove the scallops. Add a bit of ground black pepper when you put the salmon on the skillet, as well as a bit of that lemon juice. Flip anywhere between 3 - 5 minutes depending on thickness - with a bit more ground pepper. (If very thick this may take longer.) You do want to avoid overcooking the salmon. Dry is not a great idea for this. You'll have to watch your skillet.
For the eel: Place, inside down, in a hot skillet, and use your spatula to keep the eel from closing up - press it down so the inside gets to cook at least a goodly 3-5 minutes. Flip, adding the balsamic reduction, or a gluten free dumpling sauce, or if you wish use coconut aminos. Check, reducing heat. Let it cook on the dorsal (back) side for another 5 minutes, making sure both the left and the right part of the back side get some exposure to the skillet heat. The eel should be fully cooked. Remove from skillet, allow to cool, and separate backbone from the flesh, discarding the backbone.
The salad veggies & dressing:
When ready to serve - add over lettuce. I used a pre-packaged salad mix, incorporating greens and purple salad greens. But there are so many options here.
What I would do next time (AND what I did with leftover salad): Move the garlic (finely minced), and the fennel seed to the actual salad assembly, to add when adding the lemon juice and olive oil.
Inspiration source is Cooking with Nonna's Salad recipe for seven fishes. You can find hers at Seven Fishes Seafood Salad, and there's a link to a video as well.
Her fish: Shrimp, Calamari (Squid), Scungilli (Conch), Scallops, Baccala (Salt Cod), Mussels, Pulpo (Octopus). All but the last were simmered separately in seasoned water.
My fish: Shrimp, Calamari, Scallops, Mussels, Little Neck Clams, Salmon, Eel. I could not find all the fish she used, and in any case I really don't care for baccala/salt cod, and had no intention of using it. I also prepared some of the fish differently than she.
A Salad of the Seven Fishes
The quantities of seafood in this recipe are what I personally used - adapt to your own desires and needs. The scallops were very pricy when I shopped, so that's why I used so few of them.
- 1 pound mussels, cleaned.
- 1.5 pounds little neck steamer clams. (Cherrystones would be fine, too.)
- 1/2 to 2/3 cup Pinot Grigio or similar dry white wine.
In a cooking pot, put 1/2 to 2/3rds cup of dry white wine. Bring to a boil. Add the mussels and the little necks. Cover until the liquid returns at least to a goodly simmer. If you are multiplying this recipe, you may want to cook the mussels and the clams consecutively, as the clams will take longer to cook and open up. Since I had so few after removing the uncooperative ones, I did them together, periodically checking for when the shellfish would open. Scoop them up with a slotted spoon or a small spider device as they open.
Any that don't open, discard. They're also dead, or at least arrived into that pot deceased. They should open at least a good 3/8ths an inch or a lot better. Some really small mussels don't have the strength to fully open their shells, so take that into account. So, a good 3/8ths an inch. Or, more.
Remove the meat from the shells, toss out the shells, and reserve the meat. Strain the broth through multiple layers of cheesecloth or (better yet) muslin, to reserve the broth, and to eliminate sand and grit. (No, it won't appear in this recipe, but great to reserve for seafood stock.)
- 0.50 pounds shrimp (wild-caught). Pre-peel these. You can leave the tail shell on, which many may do, but I figure in a salad I'd just rather remove these as well. I don't want to slow down the dining process in consuming and enjoying this dish. De-vein.
- 0.60 pounds Calamari (wild-caught, cleaned). Chop the tubes into rings, about 1/2 inch wide (they will shrink), and don't ignore the tentacles (unless they freak you out). Chop those into two sets of 4 tentacles apiece.
- 3 cloves garlic
- About 1 teaspoons freshly-cracked black pepper (or 12 whole peppercorns).
- 1 teaspoon fennel seeds
- 3 slices of lemon peel
- 1/2 cup white wine
- 1 tablespoon salt
For the shrimp: Add, cook about 3-5 minutes, and depending on size, no more than that. Shrimp easily overcook and turn either mushy or dry. Indeed, if you Pull them out of the water in the top of that double boiler. Run under cold water for about 30 seconds. Reserve.
For the squid: Add, cook two minutes or a little less, NO MORE. Squid easily toughens. We don't need "rubber band" food here! Pull them out of the water in the top of that double boiler. Drench under cold water for about 30 seconds. Reserve.
- 0.25 pounds sea scallops. (By all means, add more if you wish. I was simply feeling budget-oriented...) Buy "dry scallops" - ones not injected with water solutions to make them weigh more. This means you have to trust your fishmonger. The ones with fluid injected will NOT brown up at all.
- 8 ounces salmon, skin removed. Wild-sourced is best - I really like king salmon, but it can be a bit pricy. If farmed, only purchase from Canada, Scotland and US sources.
- 4-5 ounces eel. Get your fishmonger to de-gut this for you. I do ask him to leave the skin on but at your option, you can have him remove it. That's usually their default, anyway. Prior to being cooked, it is slimy, but once cooked, this scale-less fish skin forms great umami, mostly dissolving into the meat.
- Ground black pepper.
- Lemon juice from 1/3 lemon.
- 1 - 2 tablespoons of balsamic reduction (or lacking that, coconut aminos, or an Asian dumpling sauce).
For the scallops: pat dry. Make sure your skillet is HOT. This is the other factor that will help you brown your scallops. Set the skillet at medium high, add the scallops, and flip them after two-three minutes. Cook another two, check to see how they look (ranges all cook differently), remove to a paper towel to absorb any grease.
For the salmon: There are various thicknesses in a salmon fillet. Cut accordingly, in longer slabs, and pan fry after you remove the scallops. Add a bit of ground black pepper when you put the salmon on the skillet, as well as a bit of that lemon juice. Flip anywhere between 3 - 5 minutes depending on thickness - with a bit more ground pepper. (If very thick this may take longer.) You do want to avoid overcooking the salmon. Dry is not a great idea for this. You'll have to watch your skillet.
For the eel: Place, inside down, in a hot skillet, and use your spatula to keep the eel from closing up - press it down so the inside gets to cook at least a goodly 3-5 minutes. Flip, adding the balsamic reduction, or a gluten free dumpling sauce, or if you wish use coconut aminos. Check, reducing heat. Let it cook on the dorsal (back) side for another 5 minutes, making sure both the left and the right part of the back side get some exposure to the skillet heat. The eel should be fully cooked. Remove from skillet, allow to cool, and separate backbone from the flesh, discarding the backbone.
The salad veggies & dressing:
- 8 ounces of mixed olives - these were half Kalamata and half green stuffed with goat cheese. Buy them pitted.
- 6 ounces red bell pepper, sliced thin then chopped once more in half.
- 4 ounces crisp celery.
- About 1/4 cup chopped flat leaf parsley.
- Juice from 1/2 lemon.
- 3 - 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil.
- Ground black pepper to taste.
- Leaf lettuce or mixed greens. Two good handfuls, rinsed and dried (salad spinners work great).
When ready to serve - add over lettuce. I used a pre-packaged salad mix, incorporating greens and purple salad greens. But there are so many options here.
What I would do next time (AND what I did with leftover salad): Move the garlic (finely minced), and the fennel seed to the actual salad assembly, to add when adding the lemon juice and olive oil.
