Pescado Con Agristada
Submitted by mrsardie
Pescado con agristada: Sephardic poached fish in lemon-egg sauce with cake meal. Traditional Jewish recipe served warm or chilled, kosher for Passover.
YIELD
8 servingsPREP
10 minCOOK
20 minREADY
30 minPescado con agristada is a classic Sephardic Jewish dish from the Mediterranean Jewish tradition: poached fish fillets bathed in a tangy lemon-egg sauce thickened with matzo meal (also called cake meal). Served warm or, more traditionally, chilled, this is the kind of dish that appears on Sephardic Shabbat tables and Passover seders, where its kosher-for-Passover thickener (matzo meal instead of flour) makes it a holiday-friendly preparation.
The technique is similar to Greek avgolemono: temper the beaten eggs with hot poaching liquid before adding them back to the pan, so the eggs thicken the sauce instead of scrambling. This is the make-or-break step. Pour cold eggs directly into hot broth and you get egg-drop soup; do it gradually and you get a silky lemony sauce.
Serving chilled is traditional and worth trying. The sauce sets up like a savory custard around the fish, and the cool, tangy bite is unexpectedly refreshing. It’s the kind of dish that distinguishes Sephardic from Ashkenazi Jewish cooking.
Pro Tips
- Use a mild white fish: cod, haddock, tilapia, or snapper all work well.
- Don’t let the sauce boil after adding the eggs; gentle warmth only or the sauce will curdle.
- Use freshly squeezed lemon juice for the brightest tang.
- If serving chilled, the sauce thickens further in the fridge; thin with a splash of fish broth if needed.
Variations
Ingredients
Directions
To poach the fish, combine the water, lemon juice, parsley, salt and pepper in a large deep skillet.
Add the fish fillets, in one layer if possible.
Bring the liquid to a boil, then lower the heat and cover the skillet.
Simmer the fish for 5 to 10 minutes, or until it is just cooked through but not falling apart.
(If the fillets are thick, carefully turn them once during the poaching).
Use a slotted spoon to transfer the fish to a deep serving dish.
Reserve the broth.
For the sauce, beat the eggs and lemon juice together in a medium bowl.
In a small bowl, mix the cake meal and water to make a creamy paste.
Stir the paste into the egg-lemon mixture. Then gradually stir in about ½ cup of the hot fish broth. Stirring constantly, add all the egg-lemon mixture back into the hot fish broth and stir over low heat until the sauce has thickened. Adjust the seasoning, if necessary. pour the sauce over the fish. Serve hot or, as is more customary, refrigerate the fish and the sauce and serve them chilled.
Comments
In your list of ingredients you say 2 tablespoons of oil but in your directions you never say when to add the oil. Please correct.