Fish season is opened, long live Bonito !
Cooking among men are becoming very trendy these days and supposedly it is perceived as very "sexy" by most of the ladies. I have been enjoying all kinds of cooking since ten years now, and experimenting new recipes from different kitchen cultures including Turkish, Italian and some of my own treats me during my utmost stressed times. Not only cooking but, I enjoy very much eating as well. Fishing season has just begun in Turkey so, most of the fish are very fresh and tasty.
One of my favorite fish is Bonito, or so called "Palamut" in Turkish and it can be cooked in many different forms. Grilled fillet, deep fried medallions (
takoz - Turkish), stew (
bugulama -Turkish), or baked in oven.
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| Bonito Fish or "Palamut" in Turkish |
Today I chose to cook them on diecast pan over the stove. After having them professionally cleaned, had them cut as fillets.However, I further cut them into two pieces because my diecast pan is rather a small one.
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| Bonito Fillets |
Just simply season them with sea salt, and a little bit of extra virgin olive oil and let them rest for about five to ten minutes so that they can suck up the salt and olive oil. In addition, if you like herbs, you can also add some black pepper and oregano as well. I like to taste the fish, so I only use salt and olive oil.
While your fish are marinating, put your diecast pan on the stove, spread a little olive oil on it and let it heat up for that ten minutes with medium heat. Once you start seeing a slight smoke coming out of your pan, you are all set to go. Be careful when placing your fish on the pan, because the oil is hot, you can easily burn your fingers. Gently, place your fish and do not turn them for five minutes.Which side to start with? No difference, but I normally start with the skinned side, so that when its crispy and cooked, it is easier to turn it with tongs.
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| Diecast pan with Bonito medallions |
What is good with it?
Mixed green salad with French onion, corn and dressed with olive oil, lemon juice and sea salt is Bonito's second best friend. Very easy to do, in fact you can have it in five minutes while your Bonitos are being cooked. Take a good size of lettuce, and fresh basil and use your hands to chop them off. Yes, you heard me right....Do not use knives when chopping greens. Simple tear them off into pieces. Now you are set to go cutting French onion. When finished with all chopping and tearing apart, just put everything in a nice salad bowl and add good portion of extra virgin olive oil, squeeze one medium size lemon, add some sea salt. Finally a can of corns to finish the final touch....
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| Lettuce, French Onion, Fresh Basil, Corn with simple Olive oil and lemon dressing |
What is event better with it?
Yes, you are right...a glass of Raki, but for those who doesn't know what Turkish Raki is, let me give you a little explanation. I will let the Wikipedia do the work for me :
Raki (Turkish: rakı,[1] Ottoman Turkish: راقى, pronounced [ɾaˈkɯ]) is a Turkish unsweetened, anise-flavored hard alcoholic drink that is popular in Turkey and in the Balkan countries as an apéritif. It is often served with seafood or Turkish meze. It is similar to several other alcoholic beverages available around the Mediterranean, Albanian regions and the Middle East, e.g. pastis, ouzo, sambuca, arak, and aguardiente. It is considered as the nationalalcoholic beverage of Turkey.[2]
Should you wish to learn more about Raki here is the link for you:
Soon, I will write an entire page on Raki, its do's and dont's....
Don't forget....simpler it gets, tastier the food gets. So, dont try to go over your head trying to discover America again. Just keep it simple, believe me, people will love your food.
Enjoy your Palamut... Serefe ("
Cheers" in Turkish)
