Roasting a whole fish is something I’ve been doing for most of my life. I take it so for granted that I am always shocked when people ask for a recipe. The recipe is basically: Buy a fish and stick it in the oven. Really. It’s that simple.
But I realize that many people have never bought/cooked a whole fish. They are more used to following recipes that call for fillets, and so when faced with a fish with a face, are a bit put off. You shouldn’t be. Fish cooked with the bones in, like any meat, is always going to be more flavorful.
We are very lucky to have a great fish store right across the street. They have fresh fish which they will gladly clean for me, ready for roasting. This means they not only take out the insides (the guts) but also take off the scales.
The most common fish I buy are Dentice, Orata or Spigola. These are all Mediterranean fish, and I always buy the ones that are not farmed (I find farmed fish to be a bit mealy). I also sometimes buy Triglie, which are my favorite, but usually quite small and so too fiddly to deal with, or a Rombo, which is often too big for just two people.
If you are buying a fresh whole fish, the important thing is to try to buy it the same day you are going to eat it. The longer it sits around, the more ‘fishy’ it will taste (and not in a good way.) When you get home, take the fish out of whatever wrapping it is in, and give it a rinse and pat dry. Then put it in a clean dish. The best thing to do is to put it in a colander over a dish, so any liquid can drain. What you want to insure is that the fish does not sit in its own liquid. This is what can make it taste off.
Since I buy fish the same day I am going to cook it, I just unwrap it, give it a rinse, and place it on a plate in the fridge.
Quantities: I usually figure on about 600 grams (about a pound) of fish per person. So if it’s just Domenico and me, I either get two small fish or one big one.
Cooking times: Usually 20 minutes for a small fish and about 25 for a bigger one.
Serving: I find it’s easiest if I do the boning in the kitchen. Especially for a dinner party, no one wants to be dealing with bones. It’s not that hard once you get the hang of it. Here is a video that is pretty good at explaining it. Just make sure you tell people to watch out for bones.
Roast Whole Fish
Yield 2
Ingredients
- 1.2 kilos / 2 pounds of whole fish*
- Salt
- Pepper
- Extra virgin olive oil
- Optional: a few slices of lemon and a few sprigs of parsley
*Either two small fish or one big one
Instructions
Preheat oven to 180C/350F
Line an oven tray with parchment. This makes clean up easier.
Pat the fish dry and place on lined oven tray.
- Drizzle with olive oil, using your hands to evenly coat fish. Then season inside and outside with salt and pepper. If you want, you can stuff the cavity of the fish with a few slices of lemon and some parsley.
- Place in preheated oven for 20 minutes for the small fish or 25 minutes for the large fish.
- When done, take out of oven and let it sit for a few minutes. Bone the fish, placing the fillets on a warm serving platter. I usually bone the fish directly on the oven tray, putting the bones to one side. This way I can use the parchment to wrap of the bones to through away.
- Drizzle with a bit of light olive oil if desired and serve.
I’d love to watch the video–can you please link it? (also something is wrong with the comments box–there are three fields below this big one and none of them have labels on them….)
Oops! Had forgotten to link it. I did now. I’m not sure what is wrong with the comments. They are working fine as far as I can tell.