I think one of our favourite fishes has to be Cod. It is so mild and sweet and takes well to other flavours. I prefer the loins of course as they are the meatiest. Someone told me once upon a time that flatter fish fillets come from closer to the tail section and are fishier tasting. I do like fish, but I don’t like really fishy tasting fish, if that makes sense. I always buy sustainable cod, and I adore British and Icelandic Cod. Thankfully our Cod here in the North Sea has been brought back from the brink and once again been awarded sustainable status. Yay! We can now enjoy it again with a clear conscience!
I love deep fried cod, most of all, but sadly that is a once in a blue moon treat for me these days, so more often than not I opt for a healthier way of preparing it. Today I adapted a recipe which I found on Fashionable Foods for a roasted chili & lime cod. The flavours sounded amazing.
I had actually made it one other time, but found the rub a bit too much for only two fillets of fish, so I have adapted it to make four servings instead. The flavours work much better when spread out over more fish. At least for me anyways.
The rub contains sweet paprika (don’t be tempted to use hot or smoked), dried parsley and oregano, MILD chili powder (I can’t stress this enough) . . .
Garlic powder, sea salt, black pepper and cayenne pepper. The fish gets rolled in olive oil and then in the spice mixture before being placed in a dish and being roasted for just the right amount of time . . .
While it is roasting you create a lime butter using melted butter, more olive oil and the zest and juice of two limes. Again, far too much for just two servings. It worked much better on four. This gets spooned over the fish as soon as it comes out of the oven.
What you end up with is tender, perfectly cooked, well flavoured cod . . . the flavours of the rub not being so over-powering that you cannot taste the fish. In short . . . PERFECTION!
Cod Fillets with Chili & Lime
Delicious, perfectly cooked fillets of Cod with fabulous flavours! You are going to love, LOVE this.
ingredients:
For the rub:
1 tsp sweet paprika
1 tsp dried parsley leaves
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/2 tsp mild chili powder
1/2 tsp garlic powder
1/4 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp fine sea salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
1/8 tsp cayenne pepper
You will also need:
2 TBS extra virgin olive oil, divided
4 thick cod fillets
1 TBS butter, melted
the zest and juice of two limes
instructions:
Preheat the oven to 230*C/440*F/ gas mark 7. Have ready a baking dish large enough to hold all of the fish in a single layer.
Mix
together all of the rub ingredients. Place 1 TBS of the olive oil in a
dish. Roll the fish fillets, one at a time, in this and then roll them
in the spice mixture, coating them all over. Place into a single layer
in the baking dish. Roast in the preheated oven for 10 to 12 minutes
until the fish is opague and flakes easily beneath the tines of a fork.
Whisk
together the melted butter, and remaining TBS of olive oil, along with
the zest and juice of the limes. Spoon this mixture over the fish and
serve immediately.
