Rockfish Fillets with Panko

You will need two large, shallow dishes or bowls to prepare rockfish fillets with panko. You’ll also need a frying pan. If necessary, slice your fillets in half and cook them in relays, keeping the cooked portions warm in a low oven. You’ll need an oven-safe plate or platter.

If you plan to keep the fish warm while cooking, preheat oven to its lowest temperature.

Place your chosen frying pan on the stove. I used a 10 inch/25 cm cast iron pan.

Over lowest heat, melt butter and add olive oil. You want enough to generously coat the bottom of the pan.

In a shallow bowl or plate–I use a pasta bowl–mix panko, paprika, salt, pepper, and potato flour, if using. I mix with my clean fingers, but a fork does nicely, too.

Unwrap fish and pat dry. Remove any visibly protruding bones or other unsightly bits. My fillets were large, so I halved them. This left me with four pieces.

Frankly, I didn’t use two bowls. Instead, I left two pieces of fish on the paper wrapping while dregding the other two pieces in the panko.

Once the fish was dredged, I laid two pieces in the pan, turned the heat up to medium, and squeezed lemon generously over it.

Fish cooks quickly, going from perfect to inedibly overdone in seconds. Happily, it is one of the few foods you can stand over. A watched pot may never boil, but watched fish won’t overcook if you’re there to watch it. Your fish will need flipping at the two or three minute mark. If you know this and are annoyed at my spelling it out, remember that you once knew nothing about cooking fish. Recall how nervous you felt. If you weren’t this person, well, many of us were. Please be patient.

Flip your fish. Note the state of your pan. Is it dry? Does it need liquid? Booze? Broth? Water? Nothing? Act accordingly.

The fish should take just a few minutes, to cook, if that. Better to undercook it–fish continues cooking off the stove.

The fish will hold in a very low oven for about an hour. Cover plate or platter with tinfoil so it doesn’t dry out.

Rockfish with panko pairs well with salad greens, especially the bagged kind none of us ever buys. (ahem) Rockfish is also good with green beans or cooked greens like bok choy, mustard, and broccoli rape. All of these dishes are excellent rounded out by rice.

We rarely have fish left over, but if you do, rockfish will keep, in a sealed container,  refrigerated, for about three days. You can freeze the fish for two months, but the panko coating will suffer.

Notes:

Substitute any thin whitefish fillet. I am assuming you don’t need the sustainable fish lecture. If you need guidance about which fish to purchase, the Monterey Bay Aquarium publishes an excellent guide to sustainable fish for United States consumers.

If you don’t have potato flour, cornstarch (cornflour) is a good substitute. If you have neither, omit it.

The fish may be cooked in butter or olive oil alone, but given it uses minimal amounts of either, I feel fine using both. Look, read the news. Are you really going to worry about butter and olive oil on your fish? Not to insult your choices–but, it’s up to you.

If the dish gets dry during cooking, you can use a few drops of white wine to help things along. If alcohol isn’t on the menu, light vegetable or unsalted chicken stock will work. No broth? Water is fine, too.

Fish cooks quickly. Now is not the time to check your email or answer a text.

Rockfish with panko may also be prepared in the oven. Preheat your oven to 325F/160C. Line a baking sheet with foil or a silpat. Follow dredging instructions. Lay fish on baking sheet. Squeeze lemon over fish.  Pour 1-2 tablespoons olive oil over. Cook briefly–no more than five to seven minutes–watching all the white. No need to flip fish over.

If you want to prepare the fish ahead of time, undercook it slightly. Fish continues cooking when held in a low oven or reheated in a microwave. Like fresh pasta, it is best cooked and eaten immediately.

As noted in the post, rockfish is mildly flavored, making it an ideal canvas for all manner of seasonings. Or leave it plain and serve to picky eaters or those wanting a simpler meal.

Another idea: add Chaat masala and ground pomegranate seed, along with a generous squeeze of fresh lime juice; served with flatbreads and a bowl of raita alongside. Even I would eat this.

Rockfish with panko also makes a terrific fish sandwich. Butter a sturdy roll. Add mayonnaise and mustard (to taste). Add hot sauce if you like. A few crunchy lettuce leaves are nice, as are pickle chips–again, this is a question of personal preference. Tartar sauce is delicious as well; a quickly made version calls for chopped pickle and chopped rinsed capers mixed into good store bought mayonnaise. I object to thinly sliced onion here, but you may disagree. I feel the same about tomato, but up to you. Add fish. Close sandwich. Eat.

Even boneless pieces of fish may contain bones.