Grouper: The Homely Fish Is Pretty On The Plate

Now about that Creole Grouper...

Every once in awhile I get lucky and make a dinner that is something to write home about.  Get your pen and paper out because this is one of those dinners. 
     It's my own creation and once again was born out of necessity.  The "necessity" being that it was necessary for me to whip up a dinner for guests when I was down to the last of my produce. All I had onboard was a shitload of peppers and a few tomatoes that were trying to die on me.  It turned out to be a keeper and now I've been making it about once a week, usually at the END of the trip when all that other fussy produce has gone to that great compost pile in the sky and I'm down to the peppers and tomatoes ~ shriveled as they may be.
    
 

Anyhow, I've made this dish with Mahi-Mahi and Grouper but any white fish works well so name your poison. I prefer Grouper.
     Start with whatever varieties of peppers that trips your trigger. I go for red, green and yellow bells, Poblanos and jalapenos. Add some sweet onions and garlic and saute them down until they are soft and all relaxed and then add some fat, juicy tomatoes.
     Keep on cookin' it until the tomatoes give up their goods and every one in the pot looks all fat and happy. (Read: saucy and thickened.)

Give the fish a little massage with some olive oil and season it with Creole seasoning. You can use a store bought one if you like or you can make your own using paprika, garlic powder, onion powder, cayenne pepper, dried thyme and oregano, salt and pepper.

 Take the pepper mixture out of the pan, wipe the pan clean and then heat it back up and sear the grouper on one side until it's cooked about half way through. Put most of the peppers into a baking dish, top with the fish, cooked side up and them put the reserved peppers on top of that.
    

Pop it in the oven and bake it for 5-10 minutes or until the fish is cooked through. I serve it with Jalapeno and Monterey Jack Grits or with a Green Chile-White Cheddar mashed potato.  Either way, it's the shizzle and reminds of us of the wonderful flavors of Puerto Rico!

 

Here I am showing it with grits and yes I know, thank you very much, that these are shitty pictures and won't win me any food photog awards. Don't let that scare you...The Big Guy said it was the "best Creole ever" and he knows because he stayed in a Holiday Inn Express once. Just ask him.
 
Authors note: I may or may not have been standing over him with a knife and an offer to kindly remove his spleen, which by the way is not a necessary organ.)

Click on the "Seafood" tab at the top of this page to see the recipe.