Fried Snapper With Creole Sauce

Recipe from Judy Watson

Adapted by Korsha Wilson

Published May 19, 2021

Fried Snapper With Creole Sauce
Linda Xiao for The New York Times Food Stylist: Judy Kim.
Total Time
30 minutes
Rating
4(186)
Comments
Read comments

Best enjoyed using local snapper, this bright dish represents the protein part of fish and fungi, a classic duo on dinner tables in the Virgin Islands. The fish is topped with plenty of thyme-laced, tomato-based Creole sauce and is typically served over a bed of fungi, the classic Virgin Islands side dish of buttery cooked cornmeal with sliced, boiled okra. Michael Anthony Watson and Judy Watson, husband-and-wife owners of Petite Pump Room in St. Thomas, traditionally use whole fried snapper for this recipe, but you can use fish fillets. For authenticity, serve them with plenty of hot sauce on the side for a little extra heat. —Korsha Wilson

Featured in: In the Virgin Islands, Fungi Tells a Story

  • or to save this recipe.

  • Subscriber benefit: give recipes to anyone
    As a subscriber, you have 10 gift recipes to give each month. Anyone can view them - even nonsubscribers. Learn more.
    Subscribe

  • Print Options

Advertisement

Ingredients

Yield:4 servings

    For the Creole Sauce

    • 3tablespoons olive oil
    • 3medium yellow onions, halved and cut into ¼-inch-thick slices
    • 1red bell pepper, cored and cut into ¼-inch-thick slices
    • 1green bell pepper, cored and cut into ¼-inch-thick slices
    • 4garlic cloves, sliced
    • 1(14-ounce) can tomato sauce
    • 4fresh thyme sprigs
    • 4teaspoons distilled white vinegar
    • 4teaspoons seasoning salt, such as Creole seasoning or Lawry’s
    • Kosher salt and ground black pepper

    For the Pan-fried Snapper

    • ⅓cup vegetable oil
    • ½cup all-purpose flour
    • 1½teaspoons seasoning salt, such as Creole seasoning or Lawry’s
    • 4skin-on red snapper fillets (about 6 ounces each)
    • Hot sauce (optional)
Ingredient Substitution Guide
Nutritional analysis per serving (4 servings)

570 calories; 32 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 0 grams trans fat; 21 grams monounsaturated fat; 5 grams polyunsaturated fat; 32 grams carbohydrates; 6 grams dietary fiber; 9 grams sugars; 40 grams protein; 1092 milligrams sodium

Note: The information shown is Edamam’s estimate based on available ingredients and preparation. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice.

Powered by
Cooking Newsletter illustration

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.

Opt out or contact us anytime. See our Privacy Policy.

Preparation

  1. Step 1

    Prepare the sauce: In a large skillet, heat the olive oil over medium until shimmering. Add the onions, red and green bell peppers and garlic, and cook, stirring occasionally, until fragrant and just starting to brown, about 7 minutes.

  2. Step 2

    Stir in the tomato sauce, thyme and 1¾ cups water; bring to a boil over high.

  3. Step 3

    Stir in the white vinegar and seasoning salt, reduce the temperature to medium-low and simmer for 10 minutes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Cover and keep warm.

  4. Step 4

    Meanwhile, prepare the fish: Heat the vegetable oil in a large frying pan over medium. On a large plate, mix the flour and seasoning salt with a fork.

  5. Step 5

    Pat the snapper fillets dry using paper towels, and season 2 fillets with salt and pepper before dipping them into the flour mixture until coated on both sides.

  6. Step 6

    Once the oil is shimmering, gently lay the floured fillets in the hot oil, skin-side down, and cook until skin is crispy, 3 to 4 minutes. Using a fish spatula, carefully flip fillets and cook for an additional 2 to 3 minutes, until cooked through.

  7. Step 7

    Transfer the fish to a large paper-towel-lined plate. Cover loosely with foil and repeat with the remaining fillets.

  8. Step 8

    Divide fish among plates, skin side up, and top with the Creole sauce. Serve immediately, passing hot sauce at the table.

Ratings

4 out of 5
186 user ratings
Your rating

or to rate this recipe.

Have you cooked this?

or to mark this recipe as cooked.

Private Notes

Leave a Private Comment on this recipe and see it here.

Comments

Jamie

Also, one can purchase tomato sauce with no salt added. Or make your own. And add seasonings that are not blended with salt. You can do it! It's the heart of the recipe here that counts.

Barry

This was absolutely delicious, though I doubled the amount of Creole seasoning for a little extra kick. But 30 minutes is an extremely optimistic projection. Just prepping the onions, peppers, and garlic took 20 minutes, and the sauce took a good 45 minutes. Worth every minute.

John Pendleton

see Shrimp Creole by Vallery Lomas in NYTC for homemade Creole seasoning

elizabeth

Delicious! I got some fresh snapper from the farmer’s market and used local seasoning mix similar to lawrys (had habanero too). It came out incredible! Also made some rice, couldn’t resist. Worth it!

Bryan

This is an excellent and fairly easy recipe as written. Just be realistic about how long it takes to sweat aromatics to "starting to brown": This takes at least 20 minutes at medium heat. I covered the pan for 5-10 minutes to jump start the sweating and the removed the lid to evaporate the liquid for like another 10 min so that the browning can begin.

SarahT

This was super good!! Love the flavors with one of my favorite fish. So, I tried to follow closely - here are some things I did differently due to access to ingredients. I pureed diced tomatoes to make "sauce". I used rice vinegar. Made my own Creole seasoning from Vallery Lomas. The result was delicious!! The only thing I'll change next time is to reduce the water added. I felt it wasn't as thick as I'd like.

Private comments are only visible to you.

Credits

Adapted from Judy Watson of Petite Pump Room Bar and Restaurant, St. Thomas

Recipe Tags

Advertisement

or to save this recipe.