Poached Fish Parmesan

HELLO!


After a long while, I finally managed to blog again! First some updates about me...


I enrolled myself in a short culinary class (Fundamentals of Culinary Arts) at First Gourmet Academy. It was fun! Learning new techniques, from knife skills, to plating, all in 8 days. If you want to learn how to properly cook, but can't afford those really expensive schools, inquire at FGA. ;) (btw, our chef instructor is Swedish ah)


And during those times I was busy in class, I also landed a job. So yay me!


Anyway, so I finally found time to cook and blog again. I wanted something cheesy, but with fish. I usually pair cheese with chicken (as you can see in my other blogs). I stumbled upon this recipe called Poached Fish Parmesan by the Dairy Farmers of Canada. 

My version. But since my photo is not really amazing, I'll post the photo from their website :)

photo credit link: Poached Fish Parmesan

This is a really fast, and simple dish to make. You need around 30 minutes or so, including prep time (providing you have good knife skills, and multi-tasking skill :D).This dish reminds me of carbonara, and at the same time, well... pizza. Maybe because of the green capsicum and cheese? It's tasty, and creamy; a blend of milk, cheese, and wine, but something is still  lacking in my opinion. As Grace mentioned it, all the ingredients blended together that it lacks something that will counter the texture. Maybe crispy bacon bits, or I guess the fish can be pan fried with breading. But then this won't be "Poached Fish" anymore.

Overall, I recommend this dish to those who want a simple pasta and cheese cravings. But you may want to cut back on the green capsicum if you're not a fan of it. I like this dish, but it just lacks something je ne sais quoi.

If you want to try this dish out, and maybe you have something in mind, let me know!

For 4-6 servings

500g white fish fillet (I used Dory)

2 cups milk

3tbsp butter

3 tbsp flour

1/2 cup dry white wine

1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese

2 tbsp chopped fresh chives (or green onions)

1 red or green capsicum, thinly sliced

salt, pepper (to taste)

500 g fettucini cooked al dente

1. Cut the fillets into small portions (bite size)

2. In a large covered frying pan, poach the fish in milk for 5 to 10 minutes, until the fish are flaky.

3. Transfer the fish to a plate and keep warm. Reserve the milk.

4. On another sauce pan, melt butter. When the butter stops foaming, add the flour. Brown the flour for 2minutes. 

5. Carefully, and gradually add the warm milk, stirring constantly. Cook on low heat until thick.

6. Add the wine, cheese, chives, capsicum. Season to taste. Cover and cook for another 10 minutes.

7. Meanwhile, cook the fettucini in boiling salted water for 5-6 minutes, until al dente. Drain.

8. Pour the sauce into the pasta, and serve.

9. Buon appetito!

Spaghetti with Meatballs

Aah, spaghetti with meatballs: an American pasta dish. One cannot go wrong with this classic American pasta. According to its history, Italian immigrants to New York invented this dish in the early 20th century. In fact, they say that you rarely see spaghetti with meatballs in Italy. You can see spaghetti and meatballs, but not with.

ok, my bad. Meatballs aren't visible in this picture. :(

Here in the Philippines, however, we do our spaghetti sauce differently. We want our pasta to be on the sweeter side, and tends to be "saucy". Foreigners might be shocked to find sliced hotdogs in the Pinoy Style spaghetti. This time, I wanted to serve my bandmates a different kind of spaghetti (well, not Pinoy Style). I tried this simple recipe. (Sorry, I didn't measure all ingredients. I referenced from many recipes)

Meatballs:

1kg ground beef
1 cup breadcrumbs
1 cup milk
2 eggs
minced onion and garlic
salt and pepper
grated parmesan cheese
nutmeg
oregano
parsley

Sauce:

2 cups pasta sauce
2 cans of whole tomato
1 onion, minced
6 garlic cloves, minced
1 bay leaf
oregano
salt and pepper

spaghetti
garlic bread


1. Make the pasta sauce first. Sauté onion and garlic until golden brown. then add the pasta sauce and tomatoes, oregano, bay leaf, salt and pepper. Let it simmer for 15 minutes. When done, cover to keep it warm.

2. Make the meatballs. Combine the breadcrumbs and milk in a bowl and let the crumbs absorb the milk. This will help retain moisture in the meatballs. Combine all other ingredients in a large bowl. Add the breadcrumb-milk mixture. Mix with hand well and form balls. (Optional, you add add cubes of cheese inside the meatballs if you like).

3. On a hot large skillet/saucepan, sear the balls until brown on all sides. When done, add sauce over the meatballs and let it simmer for 15 minutes. Season to taste.

4. Cook pasta al dente in hot salted boiling water.

5. Arrange on a plate and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Serve with garlic bread.

Happy eating! Bon appétit!