Vietnamese-Style Wild Snapper Lettuce and Noodle Wraps

Gather the troops! This is a super fun meal to share and it’s quick and easy to make. Be sure to use Seafood Watch to find a best choice for snapper at your local grocery store or fish market. Enjoy! (P.S. This recipe was recently featured in Clean Eating Magazine!)

Photo by Andrew Grinton

Yield: 4 servings

 

Dipping Sauce

¾ cup distilled white vinegar

3 tablespoons raw cane sugar

3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lime juice (juice of 1 lime)

1 tablespoon fish sauce

½ thai chile, thinly sliced, or more to taste

 

Mix all ingredients in a small bowl. Stir until sugar is dissolved.

 

Lettuce Wraps

8-ounces vermicelli noodles

12 red leaf lettuce leaves (6-ounces or ½ bunch)

1 cup fresh cilantro leaves

1 cup fresh mint leaves

1 cup fresh thai basil leaves

8-ounces small carrots, (approximately 4 small carrots) peeled, cut in half widthwise and thinly sliced lengthwise

 

Add water to a large saucepan (enough to boil the noodles) and bring to a boil. Add noodles and let cook for 1 to 2 minutes until noodles are soft. Drain and rinse noodles under cold water and place in a bowl.

Arrange lettuce, herbs and carrots on a tray or plate.

 

Snapper

1 pound skinless snapper fillets (¾ to 1-inch thick), pin bones removed

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 tablespoon grapeseed oil

 

Pat fish dry and season fish evenly on both sides with salt. Cut fish into 3-inch by 1-inch strips.

Place a large sauté pan over medium heat and add oil. Heat until hot and oil is shimmering, approximately 2 minutes.

Add fish strips, adding the thickest strips to the pan first, and let cook for 2½ minutes total, flipping the fish every 30 seconds. Fish will start to flake when done.

Transfer fish to a plate. Serve immediately.

Gather the family/friends around the table! To serve, place some noodles on a leaf of lettuce. Add some carrots, fish and fresh herbs. Roll or fold the lettuce to form a wrap or pocket. Spoon over some sauce (or dip the lettuce wrap in the sauce). Eat and repeat!

Note: If you are not up for making the wrap, you can always shred the lettuce on your plate and add the other wrap items on top and spoon over the sauce like a salad dressing.

Classic Basil Pesto

Pesto never goes out of style and it’s application is wide and varied. Add it to pasta or roasted vegetables. Slather it on chicken or use it as a pizza sauce. And the best part? You can make large batches, while the basil is overflowing in the summer, and freeze it for later use. Hooray for pesto!

Yield: 1 cup

 

2 ¼ packed cups fresh basil leaves

½ cup extra-virgin olive oil

2 large garlic cloves, peeled and chopped roughly (2 teaspoons)

½ cup pine nuts

½ cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano, not pre-grated

Kosher salt, to taste

Freshly ground black pepper, to taste

 

In a food processor, process to combine, the basil, ¼ cup oil, garlic, and pine nuts. Scrape down the sides, then add the remaining ¼ cup oil, and the cheese. Process until the desired texture is achieved, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. For the record, I add about ½ teaspoon salt and a few good cranks of pepper. No need to rush; taste as you go. Take your time and enjoy.

Note: Care for a nuttier flavor in your pesto? Try using toasted pine nuts.

 

Halibut Ceviche with Tomato Gazpacho

Photo by Andrew Grinton

Strike this recipe while the tomatoes are overflowing at your local farmers market or in your very own backyard garden! (P.S. This recipe was recently featured in Clean Eating Magazine!)

 

Yield: 4 servings

Gazpacho

½ pound small cucumbers (Persian or Japanese) (approximately 2 cucumbers) peeled and chopped roughly

½ large red bell pepper (¼ pound), seeded and chopped roughly (reserve other half for ceviche)

2 pounds red tomatoes (approximately 7 medium tomatoes), cored and chopped roughly

1-ounce shallot (1 medium shallot), peeled and quartered

1½ teaspoons kosher salt

3 tablespoons sherry vinegar

¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil

 

Add all the above ingredients to a blender, except the olive oil.

Blend until smooth. With blender on low, stream in the olive oil until combined.

Taste and adjust salt as needed.

Refrigerate until ceviche is ready to be served. Stir or re-blend briefly before serving.

 

Ceviche

¼ cup freshly squeezed lemon juice

¾ cup freshly squeezed lime juice

½ teaspoon kosher salt

1 small jalapeno (.75-ounces), seeded, deveined and diced small (1½ tablespoons)

1 pound skinless halibut, diced into ¼-inch cubes (Use Seafood Watch to select halibut)

½ large red bell pepper (¼ pound), seeded and diced small (½ cup) (reserved from gazpacho)

1 scallion, thinly sliced (¼ cup)

¼ cup fresh cilantro leaves, finely chopped

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

¼ cup + 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

 

Combine lemon juice, lime juice, salt and jalapeno in a small bowl. Stir to combine. Add halibut and mix thoroughly.

Using the back of a spoon, level the halibut off so it is pressed down in the liquid. Cover the mixture with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic wrap directly atop the fish in the bowl.

Refrigerate for 8 minutes.

Remove plastic wrap and stir. Using the back of a spoon, re-level the halibut off so it is pressed down in the liquid. Cover the mixture with plastic wrap, pressing the plastic wrap directly atop the fish in the bowl.

Refrigerate for an additional 8 minutes. The halibut should be opaque and white in color.

Drain the mixture in a colander and return it to the original small bowl. Add the remaining ingredients. Stir well to combine. Season to taste with additional salt and pepper and serve immediately.

To serve, pour 1¼ cups of the gazpacho in a shallow bowl. Then, mound ¾ cup of the halibut ceviche in the center of the bowl.

Grilled Halibut with Orange Fennel Salad and Grilled Peaches

It’s still grill season! This recipe might look a bit long, bit it’s honestly super easy. Just throw together a salad and put peaches and fish on your grill and you’ve got a healthy dinner which will definitely impress! (Don’t forget to use Seafood Watch to choose the best halibut.) (P.S. You can watch me grill this on TV for a segment I did for Seattle Refined to educate people about the Seafood Watch App and how easy and impactful it is to choose sustainable seafood.)

Yields: 4 servings

Orange Fennel Salad:

1 large orange, supremed*

3 small fennel bulbs (buy fennel bulbs with stalks and fronds still attached)

¼ cup picked fennel fronds (from the fennel bulbs)

Vinaigrette:

1 small shallot, diced small (2 tablespoons)

2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice (from the supremed orange)

1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice, plus more to taste

1 tablespoon white wine vinegar

¼ teaspoon kosher salt, plus more to taste

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper, plus more to taste

3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

 

*Cut the ends off the orange. Next, cut the peel and pith off the orange. Then, segment the orange by cutting between the membranes. Discard any seeds, but reserve the juice for the vinaigrette. Set aside segmented orange pieces for the salad.

Cut off the bottom and the stalks of the fennel. Sit the fennel upright and cut in half lengthwise. Remove the core as needed. Lay each half flat on a cutting board and very thinly slice the fennel width-wise. You should have about 3 cups of thinly sliced fennel.

In a medium container with a tight fitting lid, combine the vinaigrette ingredients, close the lid tightly, and shake well to combine. Or, whisk to combine the ingredients in a medium-sized bowl.

Combine all ingredients (orange segments, fennel, fronds) plus the vinaigrette into a medium bowl and toss to mix.

 

Peaches:

4 yellow peaches, cut in half and pits removed

2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for coating the grill

Preheat a grill to medium-high. Once hot, clean the grill, then, using tongs, lightly dip a cloth in olive oil oil and wipe to coat the grill rack.

Coat the peaches (all sides) with olive oil. Place peaches on the grill flesh side down. Cook for 2 minutes. Flip and cook peaches skin side down for an additional 4 minutes. Remove from the grill and once cool enough to handle, cut each peach half into thirds. Set aside until ready to eat.

 

Halibut:

1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil

1½ pounds halibut, 1½ inches thick, skin on, cut into 4 equal pieces

¾ teaspoon kosher salt

¼ teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

1 tablespoon lemon zest (zest of 3 lemons), grated on a Microplane, chopped finely (reserve the lemon for the salad)

¼ cup packed fresh Italian parsley leaves, chopped finely

¼ cup packed fresh mint leaves, chopped finely

¼ cup packed fresh cilantro leaves, chopped finely

 

Pat the halibut dry (all sides). Next, coat the halibut with the olive oil, then season the flesh side with salt and pepper. Finally, season the flesh side with the lemon zest and chopped herbs.

With the grill on medium-high, place the halibut on the grill skin side down. Cook for 3 minutes. Flip halibut and continue cooking until fish just begins to flake at the thickest point, approximately 1 minute. Remove fish from the grill.

To serve, evenly divide the salad onto plates, add some grilled peaches and top with the halibut fillets.