Veracruz-Style Red Snapper Fillets with Tomatoes, Capers and Olives

 

                    The sauce can be made hours or even a day before cooking the fish and serving. It gets even better overnight.

Makes 6 servings

• 45 ml + 30 ml olive oil
• 6 garlic cloves, thinly sliced
• 4 green onions, thinly sliced
• 1 jalapeno pepper, halved, stemmed, seeded, deveined and minced
• 250 ml pitted green olives, sliced
• 60 ml drained capers
• 750 ml diced canned tomatoes
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 6 fresh snapper fillets, about 240 gr each and 2 cm thick
• 30 ml fish broth or chicken broth
• 60 ml chopped fresh cilantro or flat-leaf parsley for garnish

1. Heat a large skillet or sauté pan over medium-high heat.
2. Add 45 ml olive oil and scatter in the garlic slices ; as soon as they start sizzle, add the green onions, jalapeno, olives and capers.
3. As soon as they begin to sizzle, add the tomatoes and a pinch of salt and pepper ; stir well and let the mixture simmer until the tomatoes cook down slowly and smell very fragrant, 10 to 15 minutes, taste and adjust seasonings.
4. Meanwhile, pat the snapper fillets dry with paper towels ; season them on both sides with salt and pepper to taste.
5. Over medium-high heat, heat another large skillet and add the remaining 30 ml olive oil ; as soon as the oil is hot enough to swirl, add the fillets, placing them with the most attractive sides down.
6. When their undersides are golden, after 5 to 7 minutes (3 minutes for thinner fillets), use a spatula to turn them over ; cook for 2 to 5 minutes more, or until the fish is firm and opaque at the center when pierced with the tip o a small knife.
7. Remove the fillets from the skillet to a heated platter and cover with aluminium foil.
8. Pour off the fat and transfer the tomatoes mixture to the skillet in which you cooked the fish fillets ; add 30 ml of broth, stir and scrape to dissolve the pan deposits into the sauce and continue simmering over medium-high heat for 2 to 5 minutes until the sauce is thick, season with salt and pepper to taste.
9. Transfer a snapper fillet to each warmed serving plate or a large warm platter and spoon the sauce on top ; garnish with cilantro or parsley and serve.

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