Saturday, February 6, 2010

BAKED LIME-COCONUT GROUPER

017
I’m trying to eat more fish, less red meat.  But I have to tell you, I do love red meat.  Our local Harris Teeter carries a nice variety of fresh fish, and the quality is good.  Recently, they had wild-caught Grouper, a fish that I enjoy.  It’s a mild fish with some body to it and a little fat, so I feel a little full after I eat it – unlike fat-less flounder which leaves me starving.  You can use any mild white fish if you don’t have grouper where you live (flounder, tilapia, basa, white trout, snapper, etc.)
 021
Instead of marinating the grouper and putting it on the grill, I decided to do something different.  I came up with this recipe by combining several and making changes.  One piece of fish was left over, and I heated it in a fry pan for breakfast.  It tasted just as good as the day before.  This is definitely a recipe I’ll be using again. 
018
Sweetened coconut, combined with bread crumbs, hot red pepper, and a nice touch of nutmeg that is almost indiscernible provides a slightly crispy, delicious coating for the fish.  Sweet and hot meet to delight your palate; a sprinkle of lime juice  is the perfect finishing touch.  This recipe will feed two;  double or triple it if you need more.
BAKED LIME-COCONUT GROUPER
Source:  Judy’s Kitchen
Rating:  9.5 out of 10
PRINTABLE RECIPE
INGREDIENTS: 
about 1 cup crusty Italian bread, cubed
1/2 cup sweetened dried, flaked coconut
big pinch sea salt
pinch freshly ground nutmeg
1/8 – 1/4 tsp. ground red pepper, according to taste
1/2 egg (1-1/2 Tbsp.)
1 Tbsp. water
1/2 lb. fresh wild-caught grouper, rinsed, cut into 2-3 pieces
1 Tbsp. unsalted butter
1 Tbsp. vegetable or canola oil
Lime wedges

Heat oven to 400F.  In the work bowl of a food processor, process bread till it’s crumbs.  Remove all but 1/3 cup.  (If your 1 cup of cubes equals 1/3 cup, you hit a home run!)  Add the coconut, salt, nutmeg and red pepper to the work bowl with the crumbs and process till coconut is in smaller pieces and everything is combined.  Pour into a dish for dredging.

Beat together 1/2 egg and 1 Tbsp. water in another dish for dredging.

Dip each piece of fish, first in the egg, then in the coconut mixture, being sure you coat each well.  Melt butter with oil in bottom of Pyrex pie plate or other oven-proof dish by placing the dish in the oven for a few minutes.  Place fish in hot pan.  Scoop up some of the melted fat and drizzle it over tops of fish pieces.  Place in oven; reduce heat to 350F.  Bake 15-20 minutes, or till topping is crispy and brown and fish flakes easily with fork.  Serve with lime wedges.  Yield:  2 servings016

8 comments:

Sam Hoffer / My Carolina Kitchen said...

What a gorgeous fish dish Judy. Grouper is one of our favorite fish and we ate a lot of it when we lived in the Bahamas. Grouper was plentiful there. You've really kicked it up a notch with the coconut. Excellent.

You and your family continue to stay in our thoughts and prayers. Please keep us posted about Jim's progress.
Sam

George Gaston said...

Judy, this grouper dish looks amazing! I, too, am trying to eat more fish this year and grouper is one fish that I absolutely love. I think it is due to its versatility and lack of a strong seafood aroma.

I am definitely going to give this a try.

I hope all is starting to improve on the health front and just remember you & your family are in my thoughts & prayers.

Kerstin said...

What a great idea - the coconut crust sounds amazing!

And I'm sending tons of positive thoughts to you and your family and son - I know how difficult times like this are so please know that we are all here for you!

Barbara said...

I really love grouper and this is a super way to prepare it. Sort of like coconut shrimp (which is also a favorite) but with fish.
Super idea!

teresa said...

oh my goodness, the flavors of this dish sound outstanding!

Trish said...

The best ever! Love to use up my stale bread in this way and the addition of coconut...very cool indeed!

Trust things are more 'stable' on the homefront....still praying here.

Katy ~ said...

I wish I liked fish because this looks so tempting. I would love a sample of it, because it sounds so tempting.

Roz | La Bella Vita Cucina said...

Praise God that someone finally gave a recipe for coconut, lime and fish that wasn't SHRIMP! I'm allergic to shellfish and so THIS IS GOING TO BE MADE and devoured! I promise you that, Judy!

XOXO Roz