Baby Soup

In the end, we didn't cook the baby. But we cooked the crap out of those fish heads.

Last night's dinner was a big pot of Tom Yum Gung, a spicy Thai soup. We didn't have every single ingredient so we improvised, starting with the homemade fish stock.

Bring a pot of water to a boil then throw in the fish heads (cleaned, with gills removed), some dry vermouth, a chopped onion and salt. Turn the heat down to a simmer and leave uncovered. Every now and then check to see if any foam has collected on top and skim it off. After about an hour, strain the stock and you're done. Sorry little salmon head.


For the soup, my advice is to throw in as many ingredients as you can find in your local market. We threw in all the following at once: sliced ginger, chopped garlic, dried shitake mushrooms, chopped scallops, fish sauce (not too much, just to taste), red chilies, lemongrass. The trick for cooking with lemongrass is not to try to slice it first but to bludgeon it and then slice it. That softens up an otherwise very hard vegetable. Watch your fingers.


The shrimp, in their shells, went in last. They're done as soon as they turn pink.

Ladle the soup into individual bowls than finish each one with chopped scallions, chopped cilantro and a few heavy squirts of fresh lime juice. If you're lucky, it'll look as good as ours did:

Lessons From a Sea Bass

Adapted from Mark Bittman's How to Cook Everything.

What do we mean by "adapted"? In our kitchen, we mean using most of the ingredients called for in a particular recipe, substituting some and skipping others, and then ignoring the specified measurements altogether.

What's the worst that can happen? The sauce is a little too salty? The fish a little overdone? Big whoop. The payoffs are worth it. We'll be able to cook the same meal again one day without having to refer back to the recipe. That's cookbook liberation.

On this night, we practiced braising. It's a technique you can't screw up: Brown the main ingredient (fish, chicken, meat, vegetables, etc.) at a high temperature then cook it slowly, covered, in a liquid. The browning adds flavor and crispiness, the liquid steams (we think).

We coated the fish (locally caught whole sea bass) in flour first to give some thickness to the braising liquid. After shaking off the excess flour, we browned each side in very hot peanut oil in a deep saute pan, then removed the fish to a plate. Lowering the heat, in the same pan, we sauteed sliced onions, sliced mushrooms, minced garlic, minced ginger and cayenne pepper. Here's a gratuitous shot of the mushrooms and onion, and the cheese we snacked on while we cooked.



After the veggies were nearly soft we added a few small cups of water, white wine, soy sauce and white wine vinegar. Per our mission, we didn't measure anything, just sort of threw it all in figuring it would work out (it did). Keeping the liquid on a low simmer, we put the fish back in, covered the pan and left it to cook for about 10 minutes until it was done. The final touch: a dollop of sesame oil before pouring the liquid over the fish.

Almost forgot the appetizer! Fluke sashimi. Here's how you make it: Ask your fishmonger which fish is sushi-grade (meaning fresh and fileted). Buy some. Take it home and slice it. Accompany with soy sauce and wasabi (the powdered kind is widely available and only requires a little water to make into a paste). Dip, rub, eat.

World's Easiest Salmon

Prepare on a large piece of foil spread on a baking sheet. Rub the fish with olive oil. Add some white wine, salt and pepper. Cover with lemon slices. Close up the foil and bake until done. This was Alaska Sockeye. Serve at any temperature with a dill sauce. Or just dill. Or no dill.

Brunch for Dinner

The main ingredient is good quality pre-packaged smoked trout. From there, add on the garnishes: finely diced onion, cucumber and chive, sour cream, capers, lemon wedge. Scramble eggs, folding in sour cream for a richer texture than milk. Salad dressing, inspired by Franny's in Brooklyn, blends pine nuts, olive oil, balsamic vinegar, half a clove of raw garlic, salt, pepper and crushed red pepper (we also added a splash of walnut oil for a nuttier taste, but it's not essential) in a food processor. Toss with a simple lettuce (we used dandelion greens, but don't recommend them because their natural bitterness overwhelmed the dressing) and top with grated ricotta.

Fish Dinner ($16.95 from farmer's market)

A dozen oysters (shuck them over the sink), a few filets of mackerel sliced for sashimi, and two whole mackerels grilled on the stove with olive oil, salt and pepper. Accessories include sliced jalapenos, horseradish, lemon, wasabi (made with store-bought wasabi powder and mixed with water). Bottle of $8.95 Reisling.