So Many Dishes

I admit that I don’t know much about Peruvian cuisine. Although Ken has eaten at a Peruvian restaurant in Lake Worth a number of times, I’ve never been there. The restaurant is in the regular rotation of places that the men’s group Ken is part of eats lunch every other week. He always enjoys his meals there, although he says it’s very carb-heavy and too much food. Somehow, though, he never brings any food home.

I ended up cooking a Peruvian style fish dish as my introduction to the cuisine Friday evening, and it was delicious. We were looking for something different to do with salmon, and came across seared cod with Peruvian-style olive sauce in Cook What You Have from the Milk Street cookbook series. While the title says cod, the introduction to the recipe lists salmon as an alternative. The inspiration for the dish is actually Peruvian pulpo al olivo, or octopus with olive sauce.

True to the cookbook title, I used some of the Kalamata olives that are a fixture in our fridge. The recipe simply says “black olives,” and doesn’t specify the type. I think the sauce would have been rather bland with standard canned black olives. The original dish would include aji amarillo, a Peruvian yellow chili paste; I used the cayenne called for in the recipe. The fish and sauce were delicious, and easy to put together, as the fish is simply pan seared, and the sauce ingredients get tossed into a blender to mix. The sauce isn’t particularly appealing to look at; we came up with a couple of adjectives that I’m not repeating here. Despite its simplicity, the sauce is pretty assertive. I wondered whether it would have overwhelmed a milder, more delicate fish. I thought the salmon was an excellent match.

Based on Ken’s experience, he thought the dish should be paired with either rice or potatoes, and we decided on rice. Peruvian food is very much a fusion cuisine, with many Spanish and Asian influences in addition to native foods like potatoes and quinoa. The rice worked well for soaking up extra sauce. I made the full amount of sauce, even though I halved the amount of fish for just the two of us.

While the recipe suggested making a simple salad to serve with the fish, we wanted a more substantial side. So I sautéed a mix of sliced zucchini, half of a bell pepper that I had leftover, some onion slices, and a chopped fresh tomato, which I seasoned with lemon pepper. The tomato cooked down just enough to give the dish a saucy mouthfeel without being soupy. I was really pleased with how the entire meal turned out.

Seared Fish With Peruvian-Style Olive Sauce

• 1/2 cup mayonnaise
• 1/2 cup pitted black olives, drained (I used Kalamata olives)
• 1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper
• 1 teaspoon grated lime zest
• 1 teaspoon lime juice
• Four 6-ounce cod or snapper or salmon fillets, patted dry
• Kosher salt and pepper
• 1 tablespoon olive oil

In a blender, combine the mayonnaise, olives, cayenne, lime zest, and lime juice. Blend until smooth, scraping the jar as needed, about 1 minute. Set the sauce aside in the refrigerator.

Season the fish all over with salt and pepper. In a 12- inch nonstick skillet over medium-high heat, heat the oil until shimmering. Place the fish skin or skinned side up in the pan, then immediately reduce the heat to medium. Cook, undisturbed, until golden brown on the bottoms, 4 to 6 minutes.

Using a wide spatula, carefully flip the fillets, then cover the pan and remove from the heat. Let stand until the thickest parts of the fillets are opaque throughout and the fish flakes easily, about 4 minutes for 1-inch thick fillets or up to 7 minutes if thicker.

Onto individual plates or a serving platter, spread the olive sauce. Place the fillets on top. Serves 4.

Happy eating!