Sorry, today I am not going to start off with a cute, non-related, life story. Instead, we have a much more important issue to discuss. THIS RECIPE! Mama Mia! I have died and gone to culinary heaven...and BTW Julia Child says "Bonjour"!
The Recipe
First off, I didn't use striped bass. It was too expensive. $13.00 a pound?? To quote my father: "Do I look like I'm made out of money?" I ended up finding some frozen basa fillets instead. Basa is a type of Southeast Asian catfish. According to the website fishnsteaks.com basa is "a pretty tasty fish, with a delicate texture and nice white flesh." Whatever. It was less than half the price of striped bass and was spelled almost exactly the same. (Maybe I'll splurge for the striped bass when I finally have a full-time job again? In the meantime, that'll do fish..that'll do.)
Tip: Don't buy your Kalamata olives from a jar, go to the deli counter. They were much cheaper and better tasting. (You just need a small half pound container size.) And spring the extra 20 cents for the pitted kind. It'll save you time.
Ingredients:
Olive oil: (Had)
Cumin, Cinnamon, and Cayenne: (Had)
Roasted Red Bell Pepper: $0.99 It was on sale! Score!
Kalamata olives: $1.93
Red onion: $0.53
Cilantro: $0.33
Golden Raisins: $2.95
Lemon: $0.33
Mint: $1.99
Orange: $0.43
Basa: $5.35
Total $14.85
I absolutely love this Moroccan salsa. I am gorging myself on it and the fish as I type this. The fish is excellent as well (for being a last minute stand-in). The description says it would be great with roasted lamb, but I think it would also be great with chicken or pork. Oh Bon Appetit, you outdid yourself this time!
The Results
Fast: Couldn't get faster. Except for the part where you toast the spices (only an extra minute or two), the rest of the recipe is basically chopping stuff up and mixing it together. I was done with this recipe (and had it plated) in about 12 minutes.
Easy: Can you chop? Can you stick a piece of fish in the oven to broil? Then, I suggest my friend that you walk...nay, run...to the store and pick up these simple ingredients and impress someone with the simplicity and ease of this recipe. Make sure you tell him or her that you "just whipped it up". (Preferably with a half-full cocktail glass in your hand.)
Fresh: This is the epitome of fresh. It's like a Fresh Prince concert in my mouth. All of the ingredients work off of each other to give you a taste of Moroccan Deee-Lite. Color Me Bad, but you need to bring on the Spice Girls. It could use a little more Salt N' Peppa and some Red Hot Chili Peppers! (How many more 1990's musical artists can I mention? Me = dork)
Overall: So far my absolute favorite recipe of 2010! I will be putting it in my dinner party recipe rotation for sure! The only thing I would add to it would be some fresh jalepenos or serrano peppers. (The cayenne doesn't satisfy my need for heat.) I think the fresh hot pepper would round out this salsa beautifully.
Seriously. Try the salsa recipe on either fish or chicken and tell me what you think! Go do it. DO it NOW! QUIT READING AND GET THEE TO A GROCERY STORE!
2 comments:
Okay, I know what you're thinking. There are golden raisins in the recipe! I thought he hates raisins? I do (especially the regular kind). I don't mind golden as much. But, if you'll notice in the picture, I chopped them up pretty good (and didn't use as much.) Plus you really couldn't taste them in the salsa.
So, I couldn't tell - did you like the recipe? ;) I'm going to plan on making it next week!
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