Snapper Baked in Salt Crust with Fingerling Potatoes

Like most American consumers, I’ve gravitated toward fish that have already been filleted, although in my younger fishing days I was fairly adept with cleaning and preparing whole fish. But we’ve recently been finding some nice-looking whole fish (this Snapper and some Spanish Mackerel most recently). One benefit to cooking fish whole is that the bones, head, etc. contribute additional layers of flavor to the finished dish.


We stuffed this Snapper with lemon, parsley, onion, and thyme. The salt crust held the moisture and flavors in, without giving the fish a salty taste at all. Served with lemon wedges and a drizzle of olive oil.


As accompaniment, we sautéed fingerling potatoes and onion (in a little olive oil, covered) with a little sage and finished with a light sprinkle of Truffle salt. Served the potatoes with a Wasabi mayonnaise, and had a Spanish Verdejo wine.