Crispy Smelt with a Parsley Lemon Viniagrette

Crispy Smelt with Parsley Lemon Vinaigrette

I LOVE Smelt, LOVE them. In fact I love them so much I wish that I could eat them year round.  If you've never tried smelt, then after you read this blog, stop by your grocery store, and get some! They are rich in omega-3 fatty acid, so not only are they delicious, but they're great for you. Smelt are small boned fish, like anchovies, so you can eat them whole, even the head. if you're so inclined. If you're really lucky, like I have been thus far, you'll find them fresh at your grocer.  I'm told that most grocers sell them frozen in bags.  Fresh is best, but these are so good that I would imagine they would still be good even after they've been frozen and defrosted. But if you have a choice, why not choose fresh?

Prep Time: 10 minutes
Cook time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients
1 pound of Smelt (cleaned)
1/2 cup of coconut flour
Sea salt and black pepper to taste
1/2 cup of coconut oil

Ingredients for Parsley Lemon Vinaigrette
1/4 cup of fresh organic flat leaf parsley finely chopped
5 tablespoons of Lemon juice
3 Tablespoons of olive oil
2 cloves of garlic grated
Sea salt and black pepper to taste

Directions: Melt the coconut oil in a cast iron skillet, and bring up to temperature. Season the smelt with sea salt and pepper:

Dredge through the coconut flour, coating all sides of the fish with the flour:

Carefully add the fish to the hot oil and fry until golden brown on all sides, about 5-7 minutes:

 Add the ingredients for the parsley lemon vinaigrette to a bowl and whisk until well combined, spoon over the fish and enjoy! These make a great appetizer at a party, just make sure that you buy enough, because no one can eat just one of these!

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Steamed crab legs

I am ashamed to admit it, but, I have never cooked, or steamed, crab in my entire life. What's worse is that my family is from Louisiana, so cooking crab, is, and has been a major event in my life...or it should have been.  Every year, on New Year's Day my mom pulls out her biggest pot and makes a seafood gumbo, crab legs and all. My grandmother did the same, and her mother and grandmother did too. My point is that cooking crab legs is a tradition in my family, and everyone in my family knows how to do it, except me. In my defense, I'm not a fan of gumbo, and never have been. I would venture to say, that I hate it really. My mom will probably kill me for saying that out loud--it is akin to blasphemy in her house.  Today I was forced to buy crab legs for a fried rice that I'm making. My grocer was all out of lump crab meat, so I was stuck. I could either try my hand at making crab meat from scratch, or not have any fried rice. Needless to say the desire to have crab fried rice won out...stay tuned for that Blog.  After leaving the grocer, I called one of my best friends, Gina Hayakawa, she is an expert at making and steaming crab. She gave me her recipe, and I'm going to share it with you.  Let me just say, now that I've made crab this way, there is no way, I'm going back to buying lump crab meat at the market! This crab is so good that I almost didn't have enough left over to put in my fried rice.

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Regina Hayakawa's Steamed Crab Leg Recipe:
Here's what you need:
1-2lbs of crab legs
1/4 cup of rice vinegar
2 cloves of garlic whole
3 cups of water

Equipment:
Steamer

Directions:
Place the water, garlic, and rice vinegar in a pot and bring to a boil

Place your crab in the steamer, and place on top of the pan with the boiling water, and cover.

 

Let steam for 7-10 minutes and it's done. What is one thing that you have shied away from cooking and why?

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