Baked Greek White Fish

Greece has a long tradition of psaro-tavernas (fish taverns) along its coast. Taverna’s in general typically serve a few main dishes which change seasonally, two or three mezedes (appetizers) and a dessert. Adding psaro, which means fish, before taverna allows the business owners to ensure that patrons will know what they’ll be getting. They usually sell a selection of fresh fishes caught that day, which you can buy per kilo to be made in the style of that particular tavern. It’s a bit like choosing between beef, chicken or fish in a Chinese restaurant. You know what the sauce is going to be but you get to choose the protein.

A classic Greek taverna

A selection of the day's catches at a psaro-taverna

Taverna’s have long been gathering places in Greece where you can buy a large inexpensive meal and drink, eat, and relax well into the night. There is often live music and it is not unusual for the entire establishment to turn into one large raucous dance floor.

In deference to the ancient tradition of fisherman in Greece, Lavender and I decided to serve fish as our main course. The dish is very classically Mediterranean in flavour and it incorporates both tomatoes, which only arrived in Greece in the early 1800’s. Seeds were brought over from the America’s and by the mid-1800’s cultivation was seen on the islands of Syros and Santorini. The first recipes using tomatoes appeared in women’s magazines in 1885, but some of the more remote mountain areas didn’t start using tomatoes until after WWI when soldiers from coastal regions travelled through northern regions on their way to France, Switzerland and Austria.

Lavender and I adapted this recipe from several Greek fish recipes wanting to incorporate as many of the herbs and seasonings as possible. This recipe can be made with any mild white fish. We used Sea Bream because they are typically inexpensive and can quite easily be found fresh. Sea Bream is a very popular fish and different varieties of it can be found in most of the world’s oceans. It is widely caught off the coast of Europe and Japan. You could make this recipe using filets but we decided to serve the fish whole both for the experience and to keep the Sea Bream from drying out from over cooking. Sea Bream is a fairly boney fish and since it’s not very big it can be a bit tedious to avoid bones while eating in the whole-fish preparation. If you’re cooking it in filets reduce cooking time by half.

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Baked Greek White Fish

Ingredients

8-10 baby potatoes

2 tomatoes

Mint

Flat leaf parsley

Basil

1 cup dry white wine

2-3 cloves roughly chopped garlic

Juice of two lemons

Salt

Pepper

2 whole fish

Makes one 9x13 baking dish

Preheat oven to 400F

Parboil 8-10 baby red potatoes

Once they’re cooked, set them aside to cool. Once cool, slice thinly and line your baking pan with layers of potato

Slice 2 tomatoes and set aside

Finely chop ½ a cup of fresh herbs:

Mint

Flat leaf parsley

Basil

For dressing, combine:

1 cup dry white wine

2-3 cloves roughly chopped garlic

Juice of 2 lemons

Salt and Pepper to taste

Lay two fish, nose to tail, in your baking dish on the bed of potatoes.

Stuff body cavities with tomato slices and lay two slices of tomato on top of fish

Pour dressing over top and sprinkle chopped herbs on and around fish and potatoes

Drizzle generously with olive oil and cover with tin foil

Bake covered for 15 minutes

Uncover and finish baking another 5 minutes

Fresh out of the oven

Ready to serve

Bon appétit, 

Basil