Rich Catch of Fish

That's almost as much fun to say in English as it is in German. The evocative name- originally used for an armchair- very happily describes lunch (although, it was not caught by me).

Usually I try to get to the weekly market before nine- the sun is full up but the street is still in shade, and there is a little dew on the lettuces and everything smells so green and fresh. But being detained by a book over three cups of tea has its advantages- namely, the fish goes way down in price:

(Third crate from the left top row- what was left of the striped bass after I bought mine. Incidentally, those one euro [!] fish are fresh anchovies that are as snapping crisp and hard as granny smith apples and I would have got them if we hadn't eaten them three Mondays in a row because they are delicious.)

I'm pretty sure these are the Mediterranean version of striped bass- here in Greece λαβρακια ("lavrakia." incidentally, slang for a rich guy someone is dating). Striped bass (striped 'best' in our family parlance, as our older daughter Charlene logically thought they were called that when she was little.).

So these were glorious fish. The fish monger cleans them after they're weighed, and does a pretty good job. What you want to do when you get a fresh clean fish home is this- put it in the sink, run your fingers over it from tail to head to check for any scales that may have been missed- especially on the underside near the tail and at the top near the head (the nape of the neck if it had one). Scrape these off with a sharp knife. With a pair of very sharp scissors, snip off a good bit of the fins, and anything really pointy- there is often a vicious spike near the top fin, for instance. Then give it a nice rinse under running water and clean the cavity of any vestiges of fish guts. I did this with the four fish, then packed them belly side up into a large plastic container. Fish like salt, more than you might feel comfortable using- imagine, lots of the salt will drain off as they sit in the fridge. I've rarely over-salted fish, and when I have, it has been not the amount of salt that was the problem but the length of time they had to absorb it (like if I don't get around to grilling them until next day's lunch for instance). Then squeeze lemon halves over them like crazy- 2 halves per fish, and stuff the cavities with the juiced halves. If you can afford to give them 2 hours in the fridge, that would be just about perfect. I could only wait 45 minutes.

Ideally, We would grill these over charcoal, but for a Monday lunch, the oven grill is fine- as hot as it gets (275 C!), with the grill pan in to pre-heat. We take the fish from the refrigerator and remove the lemon halves and brush them with olive oil, and we brush the hot, hot grill with oil too before laying on the fish (you will hear a nice 'ssshhhh' searing sound as you do, giving us every chance of a crisp underside). We put them in on the highest rack and check after 10 minutes, needing probably another 10 before they are blistering and black in some spots. It's the devil to turn them over without ripping the skin but you have to try- the charred skin is beautiful and very delicious- the bacon of the seas. This side will color and finish much faster, owing to the fish's being hot through and through now.

What do you serve with fish? Well, usually you would think a beautiful salad and some taramosalata, but really, these fish were over a half a kilo apiece and so luscious and charred and rich and beautiful, we had nothing at all, save some lemon and oil with a little minced parsley.

their discreet but plentiful dressing

 A lavish Monday lunch sets a very nice tone for the week!

(the armchair can be seen here: http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Armchair,_Der_reiche_Fischzug_(The_Rich_Catch_of_Fish)_LACMA_M.2000.180.39_(2_of_2).jpg)