One fish, two fish....

I've been meaning to tackle on the whole fish dinner for a while but never quite had the courage...UNTIL LAST NIGHT!! I decided that it had to be done so I went to Whole Foods and asked them to give me about 2 lbs of fish...unfortunately, my only options were small fish or a HUGE 10 pounder.  I asked for their advice and ended up with about 2 lbs of Branzini.  The guy was great and scaled and gutted it for me and after watching him, I'm glad I didn't have to do it at home b/c it probably would've been a disaster.

So my whole fish experience went like this.

parsley

thyme

oregano

garlic

lemon

olive oil

salt

whole fish

dill

white wine

I washed the fish off and dried them with paper towels, inside cavity too.  I smashed the garlic and peeled it and sliced the lemon.  The herbs, I just put into 3 bunches, putting a bit of everything in each bunch.  I rubbed the fish in olive oil and salt.  I found this was easiest in a casserole dish.  I put the fish inside and covered it in olive oil, then turned it over and rubbed oil on both sides and the cavity.  Then sprinkled top, bottom, and inside with salt.  

Then I took a baking sheet and covered it in aluminum foil, folding up the sides.  In the center of the sheet, I placed a bunch of herbs, half the garlic, and half the lemon slices. 

On top of that went the fish.  I stuffed the same mixture of herbs, lemon, and garlic in the cavity of the fish as well. 

Then around the fish, I added white wine then put it in the oven at 400 degrees for 35 minutes.  

While the fish was cooking, I started the side.  I decided to make risotto but a healthier version, using quinoa.  It was a mushroom and arugula quinoa risotto.  The ingredients were:

quinoa

onions

arugula

mushrooms

olive oil

garlic

parmesan

chicken stock

To start, I sliced up the onions and cooked them in a pan with some olive oil.  

Then, I added chopped garlic and quinoa and gave a quick toss just so the garlic released its flavor.  

A few minutes later, I added the mushrooms and the chicken stock.  

Once this came to a simmer, I put the lid on and let it sit for about 12 minutes.  At this point, I added the arugula and tossed it to wilt and then finally the parmesan.  I allowed this to cook without the lid to absorb the rest of the liquid and added some salt b/c it tasted a little bland.  Once the liquid was absorbed, it was cooked perfectly and done.

To serve the dish, we did our best at filleting the fish.  It could have turned out better but for 2 people who really didn't know what we were doing, I think it came out pretty well. 

I must tell you....this quinoa was amazing.  I highly recommend it over risotto.  Eric said that he likes it more than risotto and I think I agree with him.  This also only took 15 minutes to make unlike risotto which can take FOREVER.  The fish was awesome! It was perfectly cooked and perfectly seasoned.  I will tell you, DO NOT GO LIGHT ON THE SALT.....REEEAALLLLY coat that thing. It's the only seasoning you add to the fish.  It had great flavor and the perfect amount of lemon.  The wine added a perfect touch to it.  When eating, we took the herbs and lemon off...so don't eat it.  Also be careful for bones b/c there were definitely some in there.  These 2 dishes really went well together.  

Needless to say, we didn't have a hard time finishing it.  We ate almost the entire 2 lbs of fish and all the risotto!!! Definitely give this a try.  It's so easy!!