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Having eaten at Babbo a couple of times, and being armed with The Babbo Cookbook, Jamie and I decided to try our hand at an authentic Babbo recipe.

After reviewing a few options, we settled on an interesting take on monkfish. Mario’s insight into the creation of the dish is interesting…

From page 180, “Monkfish Piccata with Caperberries and Preserved Lemons”

“Cooking firm monkfish pieces like this mimics the texture of veal scaloppine and also makes for a fun presentation. This is a good way to introduce fish to people who might otherwise prefer chicken.”

The basic ingredients are:

• 1 1/2 pounds monkfish, bone removed and cut into 8 medallions
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup flour
• 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/4 cup dry white wine
• Pinch of turmeric
• 1/2 cup fresh lemon juice
• 4 ounces caperberries
• 1 lemon, cut into pithless segments
• 2 preserved lemon quarters (page 223), sliced paper thin
• 1 bunch of parsley, finely shredded

Some important points to note:

1. Babbo is considered one of the premier slow food restaurants in the city. This means preparation is anything but simple or straightforward. For example, just cutting a lemon into pithless (and pitless!) segments is a major undertaking. So, for that matter, is cutting two preserved lemon quarters into paper thin slices.
2. It’s important to get the oil very hot to sear the monkfish slices, and not to put too many slices of monkfish in the pan at the same time, or they won’t get the correct golden-brown color.
3. After making this dish twice, it’s pretty clear that between the lemon juice, de-pithed lemon slices, and preserved lemon paper-thin slices, this is lemon overkill. Add to this the explosive acidity of the caperberries, and the overall effect becomes almost cloying. I think this dish could be improved by probably halving the amount of lemon, and putting it in later in the cooking process.

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Tags:   cooking · Italian DiningNo Comments