Group 11: Fish & Seafood – Simply Delicious: The Cookbook Project

11-10: French Scallops

Jamie Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses January 6, 2022January 6, 2022broiled, butter, cayenne pepper, cheese, crème fraîche, dinner, egg-free, fairly easy, fairly expensive, fish, fish bouillon, fish stock, French, garnish, gluten-free, Italian parsley, mushrooms, Parmesan, reduced, sautéed, scallops, seafood, serving shells, shallots, shellfish, sliced, untested, whipping cream, white wine

Happy New Year, and welcome to 2022! I’m going to start this year off with a redo–although you didn’t know that it was such. I cooked 11-10: French Scallops early last year (2021), but did such a terrible job of it that I didn’t even want to share the pictures of it with you. I’ve had it hanging out in my queue for almost a year, and it’s time to fix that–when you know better, you should do better.

I took far too many liberties with my first attempt, not realizing that this dish was somewhat specific in its design and not just “up for interpretation”. Coquilles St. Jacques (note Simply Delicious misspelled it) is a French preparation of scallops, hence their abridged title of “French Scallops”. There’s lots of versions of it out there, most somewhat similar to this one.

11-24: Salmon and Halibut Kebabs

Jamie Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses December 22, 2021December 20, 2021black pepper, boneless, broiled, brushed, canola oil, cubed, dinner, easy, fairly expensive, fish, fish filets, garnish, green bell peppers, grilled, halibut, kebabs, lemon juice, lemon peel, lemons, lime juice, lime peel, limes, lunch, marinated, olive oil, party food, peeled, red onions, salmon, salt, seafood, soy sauce, summer, sunflower oil, untested, vegetable oil, white wine, zested

Fish kebabs are probably not high on your Christmas dinner idea list (unless you’re reading from the Southern Hemisphere), but that doesn’t mean that you still can’t file 11-24: Salmon and Halibut Kebabs away for when it warms up a bit. Or if you’re not crazy like us and still grilling outdoors in late December, you can do this one inside on the broiler as well.

I know, I probably can’t convince you to eat grilled fish in the middle of winter. But like I said–save this one for spring/summer when it warms up. It’s a perfect light meal for a warm night where you don’t want to heat up the kitchen.

11-17: Sole Fillets in White Wine Sauce

Jamie Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses November 4, 2021November 3, 2021black pepper, boiled, butter, chopped, crab, dill, dinner, expensive, fairly easy, fish, fish bouillon, fish filets, fish stock, garnish, lemon juice, lemons, lobster, mounted, mushrooms, new book, party food, reduced, salt, sautéed, seafood, shallots, shellfish, shrimp, sole, steamed, untested, whipping cream, white wine, whitefish, yellow onions

Simply Delicious likes to try to mix it up with the types of fish recipes they offer, but a lot of them can actually use the same types of fish interchangeably. I made 11-25: Best Ever Sole Au Gratin with the recommended sole, but I also made 11-13: Flounder with Sauteed Vegetables with sole as well. 11-17: Sole Fillets with White Wine Sauce is a new one to add to the list (it’s even from the NEW book), and looks just as fantastically 1980s as the rest of them.

Simply Delicious claims this “elegant and luscious fish dish” could be the makings of a global phenomenon–big, if true. Wouldn’t be the first time something ocean-related took the world by storm.

11-20: Pastry Fish with Shrimp

Jamie Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses August 10, 2021August 10, 2021all-purpose flour, bass, black pepper, butter, chopped, cod, cooked shrimp, curry powder, dill, dinner, fairly easy, fairly expensive, fish, garnish, half-and-half, herbs and spices, parsley, party food, pastry, puff pastry, roux, salt, sautéed, seafood, shellfish, shrimp, spinach, untested, whipping cream, whitefish, yellow onions

If you happen to have a “pastry fish” laying around, here’s a good use for it (I know you’ve been waiting for someone to tell you what to do with it). 11-20: Pastry Fish with Shrimp is so 1980s that I think we can bring it back around again for a 2020s-era reboot–this just screams “novelty food that looks better than it tastes”.

Maybe I’ve just been watching too much Great British Baking Show (or Great British Bake Off, as it is known in its native UK) on Netflix lately, but this sounds like a wacky cooking challenge just waiting to happen.

11-32: Shrimp and Cashew Stir-Fry

Jamie Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses April 20, 2021April 24, 2021Asian, black pepper, canola oil, cashews, chicken bouillon, chicken broth, Chinese, cornstarch, dairy-free, devein, dinner, easy, egg-free, fairly expensive, fish, frozen, garlic, green onions, Italian parsley, minced, mushrooms, salt, scallions, seafood, shelled, shellfish, shrimp, sliced, soy sauce, stir-fry, sweet peas, untested, vegetable oil, vegetables, wok

As another clue to the era from which it emanates, Simply Delicious offers a lot of stir-fry recipes, along with quite a few other “pan-Asian” options. 11-32: Shrimp and Cashew Stir-Fry isn’t much different from a lot of these other types of dishes, but if you like shrimp and cashews, this is your dish.

Simply Delicious suggests serving this with some steamed brown rice. I remember my mom pushing the brown rice on us in the 80s and 90s…it wasn’t great. I know it’s healthier for you, and there are some dishes where it works, but I’m just generally NOT a fan.

11-13: Flounder with Sautéed Vegetables

Jamie Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses March 22, 2021March 22, 2021black pepper, bread crumbs, breaded, butter, chopped, coated, dinner, eggs, fairly easy, fairly expensive, fish, flounder, halibut, mushrooms, oregano, pan-fried, peeled, salt, sautéed, seafood, sole, tomatoes, untested, vegetables, yellow onions

I’m still on my quest to finish off the Fish/Seafood chapter, so expect some more fish entries in the near (maybe-not-so-near) future. 11-13: Flounder with Sautéed Vegetables sounds pretty…plain, but maybe that’s not a bad thing when it comes to whipping up an easy-ish dinner these days.

This card looks like it got slightly impacted during the “Great Roach Massacre of ’09“, but the important part (the recipe) is still plenty legible. All you’re missing here is Simply Delicious acting as 1980s hype man for including fish as part of your diet.

11-22: Scallops with Tomatoes

Jamie Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses January 13, 2021January 13, 2021bay scallops, butter, cast-iron, chives, chopped, curry powder, dinner, easy, egg-free, fairly inexpensive, gluten-free, lunch, parsley, salt, sautéed, scallops, seafood, shellfish, tomatoes, untested, whipping cream

Simply Delicious says that now (winter) is the time for scallops, so here’s 11-22: Scallops with Tomatoes for you. It’s very similar to one of my FAVORITE recipes from this book, 11-12: Creamy Sautéed Shrimp (otherwise known in my family as “Shrimp Something”).

Seafood + butter + curry + tomatoes + cream is pretty much always going to be a win. With rice, 10/10?

11-9: Fried Jumbo Shrimp

Jamie Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses April 20, 2020July 7, 2020all-purpose flour, Asian, batter, beer, boiled, chicken bouillon, chicken broth, chilled, Chinese, Chinese/dark soy sauce, cornstarch, crispy, dairy-free, deep fryer, deep-fried, dinner, egg-free, expensive, fairly hard, fish, fried, leeks, lunch, mushrooms, party food, peeled, sautéed, seafood, shellfish, shrimp, sliced, sweet-and-sour sauce, untested, vegetable bouillon, vegetable broth

As I mentioned in my last post, this project just passed the 6-year mark, and a lot has changed since I first started it–careers, cities, kitchens, vehicles, family, presidents, even dietary preferences.

For the last two years, we’ve been sticking to a plant-based diet, with the very occasional seafood or dairy indulgence (however, traditional meat itself is totally gone). We’ll still go out for a real sushi dinner here and there (although, not lately due to coronavirus), and every so often, I’ll make a recipe like 11-9: Fried Jumbo Shrimp with real shrimp as a treat.

“Fruit from the sea” as a description for shrimp seems strange to me, even though I know Simply Delicious didn’t coin the term. “Fried Jumbo Shrimp” is what they use to lure you into mediocre chain restaurants–it’s not quite haute cuisine.

I’m not doing a good job of selling you on this dish, am I? Well, since fried food doesn’t travel well as takeout, maybe you’d like to take this “opportunity” to learn how to fry your own?

11-6: Sweet and Sour Shrimp

Adam Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses February 17, 2019October 27, 2020apple cider vinegar, Asian, bamboo shoots, brown sugar, canola oil, carrots, celery, chicken bouillon, chicken broth, Chinese, chopped, cornstarch, dairy-free, dinner, dry mustard, fairly easy, fairly expensive, julienned, lunch, peanut oil, peeled, pineapple, pineapple juice, red raspberry vinegar, restaurant-style, sautéed, seafood, sesame oil, shellfish, shrimp, sliced, soy sauce, sweet-and-sour, sweet-and-sour sauce, untested, vegetables, vinegar, water chestnuts, yellow onions

11-6: Sweet and Sour Shrimp is another of those dishes that I’d love to order from a restaurant and would not think to make at home. Simply Delicious has quite a few Chinese restaurant-style dishes, including 6-27: Sweet-and-Sour Chicken, 6-11: Chinese Duck, and 11-36: Hong Kong Shrimp.

It just so happens that Sweet and Sour Sauce is my favorite version of any dish on a Chinese menu. Shrimp is a decent choice.

11-30: Sea Bass with Peppers

Adam Martin Group 11: Fish & Seafood, Section 2: Main Courses September 4, 2018October 27, 2020almonds, basil, bass, black pepper, broiled, canola oil, dinner, easy, egg-free, fairly expensive, fish, fish filets, garlic, garnish, gluten-free, green bell peppers, halibut, lemon juice, lime juice, limes, lunch, marinated, olive oil, red bell peppers, rockfish, salt, seafood, sliced, sole, tender-crisp, toasted, untested, vegetables, whitefish, yellow bell peppers

Here’s another seafood recipe: 11: 30: Sea Bass with Peppers. To me, fish and peppers are not the most logical combination, but these veggies are mostly a garnish to serve alongside a rockfish (instead of sea bass) fillet.

This is another dish where you can substitute the type of fish if you want–we split the rockfish filets between this recipe and the ones Jamie used for 11-21: Baked Whitefish with Shrimp.

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