Gaby
The warm-loving delicacy fish thrives in both freshwater and saltwater. The zander prefers large rivers, clear lakes, and the basins of southern seas, including the Black and Azov Seas. The tasty fillet of this predatory member of the perch family is rich in mono- and polyunsaturated fatty acids, as well as beneficial minerals such as zinc, iodine, magnesium, iron, potassium, calcium, sodium, phosphorus, and fluorine. As a food product, zander is beneficial for the cardiovascular, digestive, endocrine, and musculoskeletal systems.
Ingredients: cleaned zander – 1 kg, fish stock from the head and tail – 1 liter, lemon – 1 piece, onion – 1 piece, mushrooms – 60 g, oil – 10 g, Riesling or another dry white wine – 100 g, salt and white pepper – to taste.
Cut off the fish’s head and tail, remove the skin, gut it, and rinse it under running water. Pat it dry and sprinkle with lemon juice. Use the head and tail to make fish stock.
Finely chop the onion. Clean the washed mushrooms and slice them thinly. Cut the fish into pieces.
Grease a deep frying pan or a heat-resistant glass dish with fat. Apply a thick layer of fat so that the onion can be sautéed in it. Place the fish, seasoned with salt and lightly sprinkled with white pepper, in the dish. Heat the fillet and fry it on both sides. Top the zander with thinly sliced mushrooms, pour in the white wine and stock, cover with a lid, and simmer in a preheated oven at 180°C (356°F) for 30 minutes.
Serve the cooked fish on plates, garnished with mushrooms and lemon. It pairs well with boiled potatoes or simply with bread. You can also add parsley to the fish.
Life Hack
The rule for side dishes is that they should not overpower the taste and aroma of the fish. Good companions include potatoes, rice, buckwheat, corn, lentils, or salad vegetables (for example, tomatoes or radishes). You can also bake the fish with onions, carrots, Brussels sprouts, eggplants, zucchini, bell peppers, corn, green peas, spinach, green beans, and asparagus.
