Grenobloise Red Snapper

Red Snapper

Grenobloise

Red snapper with an orange-garlic-green peppercorns- browned butter sauce, arugula & croutons.

Ingredients

Croutons

1 small French baguette

1 tablespoon olive oil

1 tablespoon butter

Grenobloise

1-16 ounce red snapper fillet, skin on

Fine, sea salt

Olive oil

Note: Rinse the brine off the green olives and green peppercorns.

2 Navel oranges

4 ounces unsalted butter, cubed (1 stick)

2-3 large cloves garlic-very thinly sliced

Pitted green olives, about 10, sliced into 3rd's (Castelvetrano)

1 tablespoon green peppercorns (in brine/canned)

Sea salt

Baby arugula

1 lemon for wedges

Oven proof food thermometer

Directions

Croutons

Slice off a section of the baguette and then slice off the crust. Slice into around 1/2 inch cubes and measure out 1 cup.

Heat the olive oil and butter in a skillet over medium temperature, add the cubes and toss them almost continuously until nicely browned and crispy. Spread the croutons out onto a plate and let cool. Sprinkle with a pinch of salt if desired.

Grenobloise

Using a sharp knife, slice off the top and bottom of one of the oranges and then remove the peel. Slice in between the membranes, remove the flesh and cut each segment in half. Juice the second orange and measure out 1/4 cup.

Add the butter to a light colored skillet over medium temperature and whisk frequently to prevent milk solids from burning on the bottom. As the water evaporates the butter will become foamy and start to become a golden brown color. At this stage add the garlic and swirl/stir. As soon as the garlic starts to lightly brown and the solids on the bottom are amber in color, and there's a nutty aroma, add the orange juice, olives, green peppercorns, and swirl/stir. Season lightly with salt and remove from heat. If needed spoon out the garlic and continue cooking until milk solids are amber in color and then add the orange juice, etc. Right before serving, sprinkle over the orange pieces and arugula.

Red Snapper

Note: If not using fresh red snapper, I recommend soaking the fillet in salted, cold water for 10-15 minutes to remove any impurities. After soaking gently rinse 2-3 times to remove salt.

Note: If preferred, after baking fish, gently turn over and peel off skin before adding to serving dish.

Preheat oven to 300F. Pat dry the fillet very well with paper towels, lightly season the skin side with salt, turn over and season the flesh side with salt. Coat a 2 quart (Le Creuset #32) cast iron gratin pan or a baking dish with 3 tablespoons of soft butter and set aside. Add a thin even layer of olive oil (about 2-3 Tbsp's) to a non-stick pan and heat in between medium & medium-high temperature. Once hot, add the fish flesh side down and place a grill press or small cast iron pan on top to keep fillet flat during cooking. Cook about 2-3 minutes to lightly brown, then remove and place skin side down into the buttered baking dish. Insert the oven thermometer into the thickest part of fillet and place in the center of oven. Bake until the thermometer reads 140F, then remove fish and place on a serving platter. Toss the croutons with the warm (gently reheat) Grenobloise sauce, add the orange pieces and arugula, pour over baked fish and serve immediately along with the lemon wedges. Pair with boiled or roasted fingerling/baby red potatoes.