The stars of the show . . .
. . were the "Chicken Potato Ajiaco Soup" and the "Fish Sudado". My fish soups and stews are always top choices. Aside from an excellent fish stock and seasoning, my choice of fish is Golden Pompano, always used "skin-on".
I make a special trip to Vietnam to get Golden Pompano flash frozen whole. I gut them, fillet them, and make the stock on Wednesday, so all the fish debris is taken away by the trash pickup on Thursday. The fillets are frozen in a single layer on a baking sheet to minimize water crystals.
My other favorite is Japanese Amberjack, also used skin-on. For testing and development I use Tilapia. It's a fine fish, but hated, hated, and endlessly ridiculed by chefs. How can you charge $75 for an almost empty white plate with a small piece of fish, a dab of sauce, and an artful garnish when the mark (errr, guest) knows it's an inexpensive fish?
I make a special trip to Vietnam to get Golden Pompano flash frozen whole. I gut them, fillet them, and make the stock on Wednesday, so all the fish debris is taken away by the trash pickup on Thursday. The fillets are frozen in a single layer on a baking sheet to minimize water crystals.
My other favorite is Japanese Amberjack, also used skin-on. For testing and development I use Tilapia. It's a fine fish, but hated, hated, and endlessly ridiculed by chefs. How can you charge $75 for an almost empty white plate with a small piece of fish, a dab of sauce, and an artful garnish when the mark (errr, guest) knows it's an inexpensive fish?
