Raw Fish Perfection
By Andrew Zimmern
With any raw fish preparation, it’s important to source the best quality seafood you can find. In general, whole fish is fresher than filets. Plus, you can utilize the head, bones and skin to make a beautiful fish broth for soups and sauces. The eyes should be clear, the gills red and it should smell like you just dove under a wave. In this video, I’ll teach you how to break down a whole mutton snapper, so get a great filet knife and follow along. Bonus, you can utilize this technique for any round fish – bass, mullet, snappers, salmon, trout.
I like to make my aguachile with lots of cilantro, lemon and lime juice, serrano chiles, cucumber, honey and coconut water. It’s the fundamental balance of salt, acid, sweet and spicy. Blend it all up, strain it and use it as the base of your dish. Layer on your fish slices, crisp cucumbers, crunchy shallots, smokey toasted fennel seeds, a few edible flowers if you have any and fresh mint and cilantro leaves. The result is a beautiful appetizer full of contrasts that’s almost too pretty to eat.
Knives used:
The Shun Dual Core Yanagiba has the length, weight, and single-bevel design of a traditional Japanese yanagiba. The single-bevel blade offers a strong, razor-sharp edge and simplified sharpening. A gentle hollow-grind on the back of the blade makes food release easier. The Shun Dual Core Yanagiba is, quite simply, the ultimate sushi knife.
Snapper Aguachile
Ingredients
Aguachile
- 1 bunch cilantro
- 1 bunch scallions
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 2 serrano chiles
- 2 cups coconut water
- 1/2 cup lemon juice
- 1/2 c cup lime juice
- 1 large euro hydro cucumber, halved seeded and chopped
- 2 teaspoons sea salt
Garnish
- 1 tablespoon toasted fennel seeds
- 1 carrot, steamed and cooled, thinly sliced
- 1 cup mint leaves
- 1 cup cilantro leaves
- 1 cup garlic flowers or other edible flowers
- 2 small shallots, sliced into thin rings
- 2 Persian cucumbers, thinly sliced
- 1 pound diced or sliced fresh fish (snapper or halibut works well)
Instructions
Combine all the ingredients for the aguachile in a blender and puree until homogenous. Pour through a fine mesh strainer lined with cheesecloth. Taste the liquid, adjust seasoning as needed. Refrigerate for at least 30 minutes while you prepare the garnish.
Place 4-5 ounces of aguachile into 4 ice cold shallow bowls or deep plates. Divide the fish into the bowls.
Sprinkle each portion with some fennel seed and sea salt. Arrange carrot discs, cucumber rings, shallot rings around the bowl. Arrange herbs and flowers around the bowl. Serve immediately.
