Snapper Filets Cuban Style (Huachinango Enchilado)
One of my favorite parts about being back in Florida is the FRESH FISH we harvest ourselves when we go spear fishing. A small perk of my husband’s new job is that his boss spear fishes as well — meaning we get filets from time to time. Yes!
Scott called me before he came home last night and told me he was bringing snapper filets home. I thought it was going to be two little filets but I was pleasantly surprised when he showed up with one 2 lb filet in one bag and two other 1 lb filets in another! YUM!
I went online and did a little searching for new and exciting ways to cook fish other than garlic, butter and lemon. Don’t get me wrong — I love garlic, butter and lemon but I am supposed to be dairy-free so I needed something tasty to make.
As I was thinking of what to look up, the plantains sitting on the counter were silently screaming, “eat me, eat me!”
Snapper. Plantains. Hmmm…..
I found a recipe for Huachinango Enchilado which is a cuban style snapper. Great! Cuban food is often served with plantains so it was the perfect fit.
This dish is ridiculously easy to make, does not take long and is relatively cheap if you’ve got all the ingredients on hand (which you probably do). It makes the house smell absolutely amazing and the taste is incredible.
I served it on top of white rice cooked in homemade bone broth for an extra nutrient-kick. This will definitely be a new go-to dish for our family!
- 2 pounds wild red snapper filet, skinned & de-boned
- 6 tablespoon unfiltered, unrefined olive oil (where to buy)
- 1½ tablespoon fresh garlic, diced into small pieces
- 2 cups yellow onion, sliced thinly
- 2 cups diced tomatoes (preferably in a glass jar, where to buy)
- 2 tablespoon tomato paste (preferably in a glass, where to buy)
- 1 bay leaf
- ¾ cup dry white wine
- 1 cup green manzanilla olives
- unrefined salt and non-irradiated black pepper
- In a large saute pan on medium heat, mix together olive oil, garlic and onion; saute until tender (about 7 minutes)
- Add diced tomatoes, tomato paste, bay leaf, dry white wine, olives, salt to saute pan and mix well
- Lower heat to medium low and cook for 10 minutes; stirring occassionaly
- Place snapper filets in the sauce and cook for 4 minutes; flip then cook an additional 4 minutes on the other side
- Serve fish on top of rice, making sure to pour the sauce all over the rice and fish; accompany the dish with plantains fried in lard
