Tilapia

viscousmemories · #1 03-20-2009, 04:46 AM

I bought a bag of frozen, individually-wrapped tilapia filets from Costco.

So far I have only cooked them one way, a technique invented by my co-worker.

Sautee some onion and garlic in a pan
plop the frozen filet on the onions
drench with salsa
cover and simmer for about 15 minutes

It's amazingly tasty and shockingly easy, I must say. I've made it several times.

Any other suggestions?

Anastasia Beaverhausen · #2 03-20-2009, 04:55 AM

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I'd use butter or white cheddar.

Qingdai · #3 03-20-2009, 05:44 AM

You can also bake it at about 350º F in salsa (I like chile verde), pesto, lemon and butter or sauce of your choosing for about 25 minutes. If it's wrapped in foil, it's very easy to clean.

Anastasia Beaverhausen · #4 03-20-2009, 05:49 AM

That sounds yummy, Q!

viscousmemories · #5 03-20-2009, 05:49 AM

mmm...

Sauron · #6 03-20-2009, 08:36 AM

I have to laugh about the tilapia fish. The reason it's being served at all is because of crashing fish populations in the world.

Chilean sea bass is also such a fish. That fish had to undergo a marketing facelift before people would eat it, however.
Why was that? Because it's actual, original name was Patagonian toothfish. That clearly wouldn't fly with consumers.

As for tilapia?

This is an aquarium fish actually; aquarium enthusiasts have been raising and breeding them for years.
Why is that? Because of the unusual breeding habits.
Original name? Egyptian mouthbreeder or African mouthbreeder which is where the eggs are laid and the young hide. And which is why they are interesting to aquarium enthusiasts.

The scientific name is obviously easier to sell to the public -- tilapia macrocephala or just tilapia for short.

viscousmemories · #7 03-20-2009, 01:40 PM

Mmm... I love Patagonian toothfish too.

Smilin · #8 03-20-2009, 03:07 PM

Mouth Breeders eh?

I couldn't eat an aquarium fish just as I couldn't eat an actual house cat.

It just ain't right

JoeP · #9 03-20-2009, 08:20 PM

Not a real evil atheist, then?

Demimonde · #10 03-21-2009, 01:25 AM

I usually panfry Tilapia in a pat of butter with a generous squeeze of lemon and sprinkle with fresh chopped flat leaf parsley and sea salt. It is simple, easy, fast, and yum!

I'm a fish keeper myself, and have been since I was a kid. When my man moved in with me I had my 90 gal tank in the dining room. The first time we had fish, he was eyeing the tank and finally asked, "Don't you feel guilty eating this in front of them?" "They would eat this in a second if you let them," I replied. "Us too probably."

Tilapia is actually quite a popular fish for back yard aquaponics. As they are an easy fish to keep and yummy to boot.

JoeP · #11 03-21-2009, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sauron

I have to laugh about the tilapia fish. The reason it's being served at all is because of crashing fish populations in the world.

...

As for tilapia?

This is an aquarium fish actually; aquarium enthusiasts have been raising and breeding them for years.

Yes, but tilapia has been a food source in Africa for a long time. "Eons" according to answers.com; I can't find a more informative reference.

viscousmemories · #12 03-21-2009, 02:52 PM

Quote:

The Nile tilapia (O. niloticus) was one of the first fish species cultured. Illustrations from Egyptian tombs suggest that Nile tilapia were cultured more than 3,000 years ago. Tilapia have been called "Saint Peter's fish" in reference to biblical passages about the fish fed to the multitudes. The Nile tilapia is still the most widely cultured species of tilapia in Africa.

Popma, T., Masser, M. (1999) Tilapia: Life History and Biology. SRAC Publication No. 285.

The more you know.

Anastasia Beaverhausen · #13 03-21-2009, 10:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qingdai

You can also bake it at about 350º F in salsa (I like chile verde), pesto, lemon and butter or sauce of your choosing for about 25 minutes. If it's wrapped in foil, it's very easy to clean.

Going in the oven in 20 minutes!

Plant Woman · #14 03-22-2009, 12:43 AM

I have fond memories of living on the boat in Hawaii and my daughter feeding a school of tilapia everyday. They seemed to know when we had bread for them. It was hard to explain to my little girl why the Japanese man that fished on our dock was taking her little pets home for dinner.

inland wave · #15 03-22-2009, 08:47 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Cynical-Chick

Quote:

Originally Posted by Qingdai

You can also bake it at about 350º F in salsa (I like chile verde), pesto, lemon and butter or sauce of your choosing for about 25 minutes. If it's wrapped in foil, it's very easy to clean.

Going in the oven in 20 minutes!

I will have to try it will salsa and/or chili verde. My mouth is watering just thinking about it.

Anastasia Beaverhausen · #16 03-22-2009, 09:44 PM

I used Pace mild, and it was out of this world.

Caligulette · #17 03-23-2009, 12:14 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Plant Woman

I have fond memories of living on the boat in Hawaii and my daughter feeding a school of tilapia everyday. They seemed to know when we had bread for them. It was hard to explain to my little girl why the Japanese man that fished on our dock was taking her little pets home for dinner.

And then she would ask what he was going to make for them for dinner... O, awkward!

Kael · #18 03-27-2009, 05:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by viscousmemories

Sautee some onion and garlic in a pan
plop the frozen filet on the onions
drench with salsa
cover and simmer for about 15 minutes

Damn, that sounds good. I'll have to try that. Usually I just bake 'em with a sprinkle of a store-bought seafood spice mix. We're out of tilapia right now, though. I wonder how this would taste with salmon...

Anastasia Beaverhausen · #19 03-27-2009, 06:37 PM

Not Good.

Kael · #20 03-27-2009, 06:47 PM

Dingfod · #21 03-27-2009, 06:53 PM

At the tire store this morning, I saw a newspaper ad for a fish taco containing tilapia with a chipotle cream sauce. I think the following recipe is close to what they were selling.

1 pound fresh or frozen skinless tilapia fillets or other white fish
1/2 cup dairy sour cream
1 teaspoon chipotle chile pepper in adobo sauce, finely chopped
1/8 teaspoon salt
12 cups finely chopped onion
1/2 cup chopped tomato
3 tablespoons snipped fresh cilantro
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon ground cinnamon
2 tablespoons butter
1 teaspoon finely shredded lime peel
1 tablespoon lime juice
4 (9- to l0-inch size) flour tortillas, warmed according to package directions
Fresh lime wedges

GodPossessed · #22 03-27-2009, 06:55 PM

No time tilapia:

Thaw filets in warm water (2 min)
Spray Pam into suitable size Pyrex dish
Place filets in dish
sprinkle lemon juice liberally
salt, pepper and a shaking of parmesan on top
cover with plastic wrap (poking several air holes)
nuke for 3 min of high
total time 6-7 min

Lauri D · #23 04-19-2009, 06:36 PM

Made tilapia for dinner last night, skimmed some recipes and threw it together like so:

Made a marinade in the blender from olive oil, a bunch of fresh-squeezed lemon juice, three cloves of garlic and Italian herbs. Put in a big ziplock baggie with five (relatively thin) fresh filets, squished around and stuck in the fridge for several hours.

Heated oven to 375. Placed filets in pan. Lightly sprinkled each one with cayenne pepper and some extra garlic, and more lemon juice.

Baked for about 20 minutes, sprinkling the filets with fresh grated parmesan about 5 minutes before taking out of the oven.

YUM!!!!!! I'll definitely make this again and try variations on the preparation. The salsa one sounds great... I saw a recipe yesterday for tilapia with mango salsa, which sounds fantastic, but properly cutting up mangoes is one of the things I am reaaally bad at. :blush:

viscousmemories · #24 04-19-2009, 06:41 PM

I made the salsa variation the other night with fresh homemade salsa, then dropped the fish onto sauteed spinach and served with white rice topped with some of the sauce from the tilapia. I was very pleased with the results.

Demimonde · #25 04-19-2009, 06:45 PM

Re mangoes: I just recently saw a demo on prepping them with Alton Brown, and it was brilliant. They key was to cut off the top and bottom of the fruit to make it more level, like you would a melon. Then stand it on it's bottom and insert a corn cob holder into the top. Now you have a stable top and bottom to work from, instead of slippery central. Use a boning knife or a filet knife to slice off the skins, slicing from the top to the bottom. Then you can slice pieces of the fruit off the same way, kinda like carving a standing tandoori roast, in mini mango fashion.

After you get the majority off, the cook can nibble the remaining mango goodness off the seed, using the corn cob holder like the stick of a big ol' mango-loli-pop. I haven't tried this yet but after many frustrating rounds the the slippery mango devil, I don't get them all that often. I am going to give it a try.