Quick fish dish has elegant touch

        A flavorful fish dish is easy enough to prepare for a quick dinner and elegant enough to serve for a company meal. Fish is always fast, requiring only 10 minutes cooking time per inch of thickness.

        When a dish can be assembled ahead of time, ready to pop into the oven for short cooking time, it is a convenient choice. This dish with its delicious flavors typical of the Provencal region of France needs nothing more than a crisp tossed salad and crusty French bread to make a satisfying meal.

        Fresh tuna is my preference for this recipe, but you may use sea bass, grouper, halibut or any firm, fresh fillets. I emphasize fresh because it makes such a difference. When purchasing fresh fish remember that “fresh” means it never has a strong fishy smell. Look for clarity of color and a moist fresh-looking texture. Store fish and shellfish in the coldest part of the refrigerator or place it on a bed of ice in the refrigerator. Use it within a day or two after it is purchased.

        The combination of the sauce ingredients contributes great flavor to this dish. Fresh is important here, too. The garlic, thyme and tomatoes should be fresh. Roma tomatoes are the best choice, certainly this early in the season. Later when you have fresh garden tomatoes, any good vine-ripened tomato may be used. Substitute 2 large tomatoes for the 6 smaller romas and be sure to peel and seed them. Here's how: Pierce the tomatoes with a fork and lower them into a small pot of boiling water for 30 to 45 seconds. Refresh under cold running water and peel away the skin. Cut in half crosswise and squeeze out the seeds and watery pulp.

        Nicoise olives are my first choice, but you may substitute kalamata olives. The advantage of using kalamatas is you can buy them pitted. Pitting tiny Nicoise olives is tedious, but not impossible. Place them on a cutting board and cover with the base of a chef's knife. Rap sharply with the heel of your hand to pop open the olive so the pit can be removed.

Baked Fish Nicoise        

        1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
       2 large cloves garlic, minced
       1 teaspoon sweet paprika
       1 teaspoon fresh thyme leaves
       6 roma tomatoes, peeled, seeded and coarsely chopped
       1 cup dry white wine
       2 tablespoons tomato paste
       Salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste
       2 pounds fresh tuna fillets
        1/2 cup nicoise olives, pitted
       3 tablespoons chopped flat leaf parsley
       1 lemon, thinly sliced

        Heat oil in a medium skillet. Add the garlic and cook 1 minute without browning. Stir in the paprika, thyme, tomatoes, wine and tomato paste. Cook over high, stirring often, for 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper to taste.

        Grease a shallow baking dish and place the fish in it. Spoon over the sauce and sprinkle with the olives. Bake in a 375-degree oven 10 to 12 minutes or until fish flakes easily with a fork. (Do not overcook.)

        Sprinkle over the parsley and garnish with lemon slices to serve. Makes 6 servings.
       Contact Marilyn Harris by mail: c/o Cincinnati Enquirer; fax: 768-8330; e-mail: marilyn@55krc.com.
       

Junk Food Sequels

        Just as so many movies are sequels, retreatments or spin-offs, so new grocery items are often variations on a previous successful product. We tried several such IIs and IIIs this week:

        • Vanilla Coke becomes available today. Big innovation: “Coke” is written for the first time in the Coca-Cola script. The drink is the bottled version of a popular fountain drink, Coke with a shot of vanilla flavoring. The result is insipid — a cross between Coke and cream soda. I'm a Cherry Coke fan, and that's what I'll stick with, but it occured to several who tasted it that it might be an interesting mixer with rum. Available first in a 20-ounce bottle, usually about $1.

        • To go with that Coke, you could try the newest Orville Redenbacher microwave popcorn flavor, Sweet 'n Buttery. Like all of Orville's, it pops up beautifully tender and fluffy. It's not as sweet as its Kettle Korn, and it's not very salty, but it's much more buttery, with three times the real butter of any other Orville Redenbacher's product. Don't go near it unless you're actually trying to gain weight. $2.79 for a three-pack.

        • Nabisco has introduced a new kind of Oreo for the brand's 90th birthday. Double Delight Peanut Butter N' Chocolate Creme takes the familiar dark chocolate wafers and sandwiches side by side inside a light chocolate filling and creamy peanut butter. The cookies aren't as good as eating a Reese's cup, but it's a good use of a classic flavor combo. The next sequel will be a Mint n' Creme Double Delight. $3.69 for a 15-ounce package.
       

Now you know

        Q. What is the difference between sea salt, iodized salt, kosher salt and canning salt?

        A. Chemically, all are sodium chloride. Regular table salt — which sometimes is fortified with iodine, an essential trace element — comes from salt mines and is the residue of extinct seas. Sea salt comes from seawater that is evaporated. It is thought by many to have a better flavor than regular table salt.

        Kosher salt is table salt that is coarsely instead of finely crushed.

        Pickling (or canning) salt has been refined to eliminate any impurities that could cloud the pickle liquid.

— Knight Ridder News Service
       

Menu Decoder

        In the May 3 Weekend section, I wrote about a new batch of small, authentic Mexican restaurants offering dishes many diners may not have seen. Here's a quick guide:

        • Al pastor: sauteed pork

        • Barbacoa: shredded beef

        • Carnitas: chunks of pork cooked in lard until crispy

        • Lengua: tongue

        • Carne asada: strips of grilled and seasoned steak

        • Tortas: Mexican sandwiches. The same fillings that you can put in tacos or burritos, inside a hard roll

        • Caldo: soup

        • Birria: goat

        • Posole or pozole: a long-simmered stew of hominy and pork

        • Menudo: stewed tripe

        • Horchata: a cold, milky (but dairy-free) drink made from rice, sweetened and flavored usually with cinnamon

Little spears create high hopes
Fat vs. fit - the weight debate
Cleaning can be dangerous
Exercising rights paid off
Andy's samples Mediterranean
Smart mouth
Trade Secrets
Body & mind
ABC makes radical changes for fall
Mexican photographer layers images in meaning
Visa problems sideline soprano
Get to it