Chef notes
This is an elegant meal that feels more luxurious than healthy. It's so easy and so incredibly flavorful.
Technique tip: Cover with foil so the fish steams while cooking.
Swap option: This can be made with any fish you like.
Ingredients
- 2 pounds red snapper fillets
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- 1 onion, quartered
- 3 cloves garlic, minced
- 1 tablespoon ginger, minced
- 1 tablespoon tamarind paste
- 1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
- 1/2 teaspoon ground cumin
- freshly squeezed lemon juice, to taste
- 3 tablespoons fresh mint, chopped
- 1½ pounds bok choy, split lengthwise
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic
- 1/2 teaspoon minced ginger
- 1/2 teaspoon crushed red pepper flakes
- 1 tablespoon low sodium soy sauce
- 1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
- kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- cooked jasmine rice, for serving
Preparation
For the fish:
1.Preheat oven to 350 F.
2.Pat dry the fish fillets, season with salt and pepper, and arrange in a shallow baking dish.
3.In a blender or food processor, combine the onion, garlic, ginger, tamarind paste, sesame oil, cumin, salt to taste and 2 tablespoons water, and blend until smooth. Pour mixture over fish, coating both sides.
4.Bake fish, covered with foil, in the oven for 20 to 25 minutes, or until it easily flakes with a fork.
For the bok choy:
1.Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Blanch bok choy in the boiling water for 90 seconds.
2.While the bok choy is blanching, melt butter in a large sauté pan. Add ginger, garlic and red pepper flakes, and sauté for 1 minute.
3.Transfer the blanched bok choy from the boiling water to the sauté pan. You want to get a little bit of the residual water into the sauté pan to create an emulsion. Gently toss the bok choy in the emulsified sauce. Add soy sauce and toasted sesame oil, and toss everything again to combine.
4.Taste for seasoning and adjust, if necessary, with salt and pepper.
To serve:
Transfer fillets to a serving dish, taste for seasoning, adding more salt if necessary, and drizzle with lemon juice. Garnish with mint. Serve with bok choy over rice.
