Whole Snapper in a Salt Crust

By Olivier Quinn

My wife and I recently had dinner at our favorite little Italian restaurant in West Hollywood to celebrate a special occasion.  They had as a special, a whole roasted Turbot, which was served with a very traditional and simple side dish of roasted potatoes, tomatoes and olives.  I love whole roasted fish and Turbot is one of my favorites.  It is also a fish you don’t often see on a menu, so we could not resist.  
I was inspired by this dinner to continue my anti-holiday, holiday season menus. I thought this dish would be a great alternative for those of you who have had way too many turkey and stuffing dinners by this time of year.
I have substituted Snapper for the Turbot.  Turbot is hard to find and rather expensive.  Snapper also works better with the salt crust.  I love to cook whole fish in salt.  The fish comes out juicy and succulent and tasting of the sea, and not overly salty as some of you may be thinking.
The following recipe was inspired by our dinner at Angelini Osteria. Buon Appetito.

Serves 4 – 6

For the fish
One 3 to 5 pound snapper or similar whole fish, cleaned and scaled
and fins removed
6 pounds of coarse sea salt
4 large egg whites
1 lemon cut into slices
2 sprigs each of rosemary, thyme, tarragon and parsley

Preheat the oven to 475?F.  Rinse the fish under cold water and dry with paper towels.  Place the lemon slices and fresh herbs in the fish’s belly cavity.
In a large bowl, mix the salt and egg whites.  Spread 1/4 of the salt mixture on a large baking sheet to form a thin layer.  Place the fish on top and cover entirely with the rest of the salt.
Reduce the heat to 425?F and bake the fish for about 30 minutes.  Once cooked, crack the crust open with a knife, remove the skin and fillet the fish. Serve with a squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of the best extra virgin olive oil you can get your hands on.

For the potatoes
2 pounds of baby yukon
gold or similar potatoes,
cut into 1/8 inch thick slices
1 cup oven dried tomatoes
1/2 cup pitted kalamata
olives
1 tablespoon chopped
Italian parsley
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

To make the oven dried tomatoes, line a baking sheet with small roma tomatoes that have been quartered.  Sprinkle with sea salt and a drizzle of olive oil.  Place in a 250?F oven and cook for about 3 hours or until they shrivel up and become slightly dehydrated.  Store them in an airtight container with olive oil and a couple of minced cloves of garlic.  They will keep in the refrigerator for about 10 days.
Sauté the potatoes in a skillet with olive oil, tossing occasionally until they are crisp and golden brown.  Add the tomatoes and olives and toss to warm them through.  Add the Parsley and season with salt and pepper.  Serve immediately.
I also like to serve sautéed spinach or broccoli rabe with this dish.  I add some lemon zest and very thinly sliced garlic for great flavor.