Peixe de escabeche is a summer dish of the Portuguese south: fried fish, still warm, dunked into a vinegary bath of soft onions and garlic, then left to sit until the flavors work their way all the way through.
Escabeche is one of those techniques that shows up all along the old trade routes of the Mediterranean and Iberia, a way of cooking fish or meat and then preserving it in acid long before refrigerators existed. In Portugal it is especially loved in the Algarve and Alentejo, where the fish is fried first for texture and then bathed in a warm marinade of vinegar, wine and onions. If you know our Molho de Escabeche Português (recipe on the site), this is the same idea turned into a full meal.
It gets better with time, which makes it the rare fried fish recipe you actually want to make a day ahead. Pack it for a picnic, serve it as a light dinner with crusty bread and a green salad, or set it out at room temperature for a summer lunch. Just do not skip the resting time; that is where the magic happens.
Peixe de Escabeche Recipe
Ingredients
- For the fish:
- 1 1/2 lbs firm white fish fillets (hake, cod, or halibut), cut into 3-inch pieces
- 1/2 cup all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoon salt, plus more to taste
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
- 1/3 cup olive oil, for frying
- For the escabeche marinade:
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 large yellow onions, thinly sliced
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 2 bay leaves
- 1 teaspoon sweet paprika
- 1/2 teaspoon whole black peppercorns
- 3/4 cup white wine vinegar
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley, for serving
Instructions
- Pat the fish dry and season with salt and pepper. Dredge each piece in flour, shaking off the excess.
- Heat 1/3 cup olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Fry the fish in batches, about 3 minutes per side, until golden and just cooked through. Transfer to a shallow glass or ceramic dish (avoid reactive metal pans for the marinating step).
- In the same skillet, wipe out excess oil and add the remaining 1/3 cup olive oil over medium heat. Add the onions and cook slowly, stirring occasionally, for 8 to 10 minutes, until soft and translucent but not browned.
- Add the garlic, bay leaves, paprika, and peppercorns. Cook for 1 minute, until fragrant.
- Pour in the vinegar and wine, bring to a gentle simmer, and cook for 2 minutes.
- Pour the warm marinade and onions evenly over the fried fish, making sure everything is well coated.
- Let cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours, or overnight for best flavor.
- Serve cold or at room temperature, spooning the onions and marinade over the fish, and scatter with fresh parsley. Serve with crusty bread.
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