Pesce Spada Recipes

Steps:

• Slice the swordfish into 1/2 by 2-inch strips. Dust with flour and toss to evenly coat. In a medium skillet, heat the olive oil with garlic and chile peppers. Remove the garlic when golden brown. Shake off the excess flour from the swordfish strips and carefully place into hot olive oil. Season with salt and when the fish is golden in color, add the white wine. Let the wine reduce a little and then add the tomatoes. Reduce the tomatoes for approximately 3 minutes and add the black olives. Place on large plate and serve with fresh arugula.

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add a couple of teaspoons of coarse salt to the boiling water, then add the pasta and cook for 8 or 9 minutes, until al dente.
• Cut the swordfish into bite-size cubes.
• Heat a large, deep skillet over medium-high heat. Add the EVOO, then the swordfish. Cook the fish until lightly browned on all sides. Remove with a slotted spoon to a plate, and cover loosely with foil to keep the fish warm.
• Add the garlic, zucchini, and tomatoes to the pan and season with salt. Keep the veggies moving and cook for 3 minutes. Add the scallions. Cook for 2 minutes more to get the skins of the tomatoes to pop. Add the swordfish back to the pan and toss in the herbs. Douse the pan with the wine and scrape with a wooden spoon to lift the pan drippings. Add the hot drained starchy pasta and toss. Season with pepper and adjust the salt to taste, then transfer to a huge serving bowl or platter and serve.

Steps:

• Place the raisins in a small bowl of hot water to soften and plump them while you proceed with the recipe.
• Lightly flour each side of the swordfish steaks. Over medium-high heat, saute the steaks briefly in two tablespoons of olive oil, just enough to brown them - about two to three minutes to a side. Set the browned steaks aside.
• Turn the heat to low, add three tablespoons of olive oil to the same pan and gently stew the thinly sliced onions, 15 to 20 minutes, until they are soft. Add the garlic, pine nuts, celery, capers and olives. Drain the sultanas and add to the pan.
• Add the tomatoes to the pan, raise heat again and cook all ingredients together rapidly, approximately 10 minutes, until the sauce is thick. Remove from heat.
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees.
• Place half the sauce in a shallow oven dish. Arrange the steaks in the dish and spoon the remaining sauce on top. Place a bay leaf on each steak. Bake the swordfish steaks for seven to nine minutes, or until they are cooked through but still juicy. Do not overcook. Serve immediately. (They may also be set aside in a warm place for 30 minutes to an hour before serving.)

Steps:

• Wash the fish steaks and pat dry with kitchen towels. Rub with pepper on both sides, but do not salt as it would draw out the juices. Marinate for an hour in the wine and vinegar.
• Meanwhile, peel the garlic cloves, cut in half and remove any green shoots in the centre that can taste bitter. Cut each half in four, so you end up with 16 slivers.
• Heat a heavy ridged griddle pan on the hob. Remove the fish from the marinade, pat dry and make 4 well distributed small incisions in each steak with a sharp knife. Wrap a mint leaf round a garlic sliver and insert one into each of the incisions.
• Brush one side of each fish steak with olive oil, place oiled side down on the griddle, turn down the heat and cook for 3 minutes. Brush the second side with oil while it is on the griddle, then turn the fish over. Turn the heat up for one minute only, then turn it down again and cook the second side for another minute or two. When the fish is cooked it should be moist inside, with white flesh that flakes easily.
• Take the fish off the heat and season both sides, drizzle with olive oil, scatter with the herbs and serve with the lemons to squeeze over.

Steps:

• Place the fish in a noncorrosive bowl and pour over the wine, turning the steaks so that each of them is wet. Cover the bowl tightly with plastic wrap and permit the fish to rest in the wine for 1 hour, turning it several times.
• In a small saucepan over a medium flame, heat the oil nearly to a simmer and add the crushed bay leaves and the chile peppers. Remove the pan from the flame, cover it, and permit the oil to absorb the seasonings while the fish rests in the wine.
• Build a wood fire.
• Remove the fish from its bath, drying it on absorbent paper towels. Strain the oil and massage both sides of the fish with 1/2 cup of it. Sprinkle sea salt and freshly cracked pepper over the steaks. Pound the branches of bay or rosemary with a mallet to release their fragrant oils.
• Lay the steaks on a grill over red/white-hot embers and cover them with the pounded branches. Char the steaks for 45 seconds to 1 minute-30 seconds will be sufficient if your fire is hot enough-removing the branches, turning the steaks, replacing the branches, and charring their other sides.
• Rewarm the remaining 1/2 cup of oil and pour it over a large, shallow plate. Lay the charred steaks in the oil so their hot flesh can absorb it.
• Present the steaks then, still warm, or left to cool a bit if your hunger can abide the wait. You need only honest bread and wine and the warmth of the fire.