Fish: Pecan Crusted Red Snapper

Ingredients:

  • 230 grams of red snapper filet (skin off)
  • 2.4 grams of salt (for fish)
  • 1.2 grams of black pepper
  • 1 gram of garlic powder
  • 0.6 gram of cayenne pepper (for fish)
  • All-purpose flour: 35 grams
  • Egg (About 0.5 eggs per serving. Use 16 grams of water per whole egg.)
  • 8 grams of water (for egg wash)
  • 60 grams of pecans
  • 45 grams of panko bread crumbs
  • 13 grams of brown sugar
  • 0.4 gram of cayenne pepper (for crust)
  • 0.4 gram of salt (for crust)
  • Unsalted butter (Use enough to heavily grease the pan)
  • Nocello drizzle sauce (Recipe Link)

Instructions:

  1. Before beginning the fish preparation, ensure you start making the Nocello Drizzle Sauce. It's not required to start this first, but it should be prepared before the fish starts cooking. Refer to the Sauces section for the recipe. This step ensures your sauce will be ready to perfectly complement the fish once it's cooked.

    • A large Red Snapper Filet (skin off) Is roughly about 650-700 grams and will feed about 3 people. Figure roughly 230 grams (0.5 lbs) of fish per person.

  2. Rinse the Red Snapper filet with cold water, removing any remaining bones or scales. Trim away the majority of the dark red center where the bloodline was.

    • You can adjust the serving count to get close to the weight of your fish so all other ingredients are relative. For example, if your fish weighs 575 grams, you can set the servings to 2.5. (230 x 2.5 = 575)

  3. Pat the filet dry with a paper towel, then season both sides with salt (specified for fish), black pepper, garlic powder, and cayenne pepper (specified for fish).

  4. In a blender, pulse pecans, panko, brown sugar, cayenne pepper (specified for crust), and salt (specified for crust) until well blended. Transfer this crust mixture to a bowl and set aside.

  5. Place flour in one bowl. In another bowl, whisk together eggs and water to make an egg wash. First, evenly coat the seasoned fish in flour, then dip in the egg wash, ensuring it covers the entire fish. Lastly, coat the fish evenly in the crust mixture, pressing gently to adhere.

  6. Let the crusted fish rest for at least 1-2 hours in the refrigerator to help the crust adhere properly during cooking. While refrigerating overnight is an option, it's not essential—focusing on the minimum 1-2 hours of rest is sufficient for optimal crust adhesion.

  7. Preheat the oven to 425°F (220°C).

  8. Heat a large pan over medium heat with just enough unsalted butter to generously grease it. Cook the fish on both sides until dark golden brown and crispy. Given the thickness of most Red Snapper filets, finish cooking in the preheated oven until the thickest part of the fish is white and flaky. Continue baking if the fish is translucent or not yet flaky.

  9. Once the fish is cooked to perfection, remove it from the oven. Drizzle the Nocello sauce generously over the fish before serving. Enjoy the enhanced flavors that the sauce brings to this dish.