Another restaurant experience ruined. At this rate, I will have little reason to dine out other than for ethnic foods I cannot procure the ingredients for. Sometimes I hate myself for being an above average home cook. It’s not like Branzino is an extremely complicated dish to make, it is just one I have for whatever reason in my head reserved for restaurant dining. That is until I started venturing away from Instacart for grocery delivery and back into my pre-covid/lockdown life of trips to the market and the variety of fresh items before me in living color. Perhaps sensory overload as shopping in the market makes food items look so much more appealing than ordering groceries from your smart phone. (As a side note, also more costly as I have a tendency to add things that look good in person not considering if I am still in my food budget or not. Whereas, with Instacart you know exactly how much you are spending as you go.)
I guess I was wanderlusting at the seafood counter, thinking how great it would be to be sitting somewhere, anywhere, in the Mediterranean enjoying enjoying the delights of fresh seafood with a cool breeze and warm sun, when the butcher asked if I needed anything. My eye had been fixed on the fresh Branzino glistening in the case, but instead I asked if they had Copper River Salmon knowing full well they didn’t. Next thing I know I’m asking how hard is Branzino to make. He assured me I could not screw it up and gave me fairly simple instructions and that’s how I ended up ruining another restaurant dish at home.
Here’s the thing, Branzino in a restaurant runs between $35 to $50 depending on restaurant. The whole Branzino I purchased was under $11 including the lemon. Prep time was under 5 minutes and cooking time about 12 minutes. My savings was like a double bonus with cost and time. (Guys, women like to go out and get fluffy – trust me, we do….but sometimes you don’t feel like full makeup, heels and bras when its 115 out in the summer but you still want a great meal.) Also, this is a great meal if you are cooking for one or a group as it is one Branzino per person.
Bottom line, glad I stepped out of my comfort zone and tried this at home. It’s definitely something that will be served at my next dinner party and will most likely be making a bi-weekly appearance on my table.
- 1 whole Branzino per person
- Thinly sliced lemon
- Thinly sliced onions
- Lemon Pepper
- Salt
- Parsley
- Season outside of fish with lemon pepper on both sides. Open fish and season the fish flesh with lemon pepper and salt, drizzle with olive oil and add slices of lemon, onlon and parsley and drizzle with more olive oil. Put fish in a fish basket or cage.
- Place on preheated grill and cook approximately 6 minutes per side.
Delicious presentation and your Disco Boys need to bring back some of their French wines to pair with your creations .
Looks so good!