Salt Baked Red Snapper
“When you salt bake a fish, it works like a double oven. Cooking the fish seals in all the steam coming out of it. This cooking process is gentle as it retains all the moisture.“This is a simple recipe that you can make year-round. I hope you enjoy making it as much as I do.”
Ingredients
- 1 whole, or 2 to 3 pounds (907.2 g to 1.4 kg), red snapper, gutted but not scaled
- 5 pounds (2.3 kg) rock salt
- 3 egg whites
- Dry white wine or water, as needed
- 1 sprig fresh rosemary
- 1 sprig fresh thyme
- 1 shallot, peeled and cut into ⅛-inch thick slices
- 3 tablespoons (25.8 g) capers, rinsed and drained
- Lemon wedges, for garnish
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 325 degrees F.
- Place the rock salt in a large mixing bowl.
- In a separate bowl, whisk the egg whites until large bubbles appear. Add egg whites to the salt and mix well. Add a little bit of white wine or water to the salt, mixing well until it reaches the consistency of wet sand.
- Stuff the belly of the fish with the rosemary, thyme and shallots. On a large baking sheet, place a layer of salt and press down to even it out.
- Place the stuffed fish on top of the layer of salt. Cover the fish with the remaining salt, pressing down all around to make a tight fishshaped salt mound.
- Bake fish on the middle rack of the oven for 45 to 50 minutes. Remove baking sheet from the oven. With the back of a wooden or heavy metal spoon, tap the salt mounds to break salt into large chunks then peel it away.
- With a spatula, remove the fish from the salt and place it on a serving tray. Peel away the skin; it should come off very easily.
- Serve with capers and lemon wedges.
Notes
Photo by Daniela Loera