Tilapia with Citrus Bagna Cauda

February 23, 2006 | Filed Under Italian Cuisine, Italian Recipes, Seafood, Tilapia

Image hosted by Photobucket.com A recipe by celebrity chef, Giada, this Tilapia with Citrus Bagna Caôda (also spelled Bagna Cauda) is very good! From Ivonne, I learned that bagna caôda means ‘hot bath’ in Italian.

The recipe made for an easy cooking adventure for me. I prepared the bagna caôda sauce first — the main ingredients included anchiovies, olive oil, and orange juice.

Then I fried the fish. When cooked, I drizzled the sauce over the fish and served it with rice and salad.

Mmmm, Mmmm, good! Good to eat and easy to prepare! The tilapia fish was light and fluffy, and the citrus bagna caôda added a special explosive taste to the fish.

In a previous recipe post where I used tilapia (Fish with Tomato Sauce/Peixe com Mollo de Tomate), the question came up whether one could find tilapia in Italy. According to Helen of Beyond Salmon, the answer is ‘no.’ However, there are many other substitutes, such as:

Catfish Cod Hake Haddock Pollock Red Snapper Bass Sea Bream (Orata in Italian) Mediterranean Bass (Branzino in Italian)

Helen says that you can use, pretty much, any white or cream colored fish that is delicate or slightly firm as a substitute for tilapia. Thanks for the advice, Helen!

Paz

Ed. Note: Gia has informed me, in the comments section, that while not popular, tilapia is available in Torino.

Ed. Note: Feb. 1, 2011 – Seems like I’ve lost half of this post, including the recipe. I’m reposting the recipe, which is by Giada De Laurentis of Food Network.

Tilapia with Citrus Bagna Cauda

Giada De Laurentis (Food Network)

Ingredients

3 tablespoons unsalted butter
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, plus 2 teaspoons
4 anchovy fillets, minced
1 1/2 teaspoons minced garlic
2 tablespoons orange juice
2 tablespoon thinly sliced fresh basil leaves
1 teaspoon lemon zest
1 teaspoon orange zest
6 (6-ounce) skinless tilapia fillets
Salt and freshly ground pepper

Directions

Cook the butter and 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil in a heavy medium saucepan over low to medium heat just until the butter is melted, stirring frequently. Add the anchovies and stir until the anchovies dissolve, about 2 minutes. Add the garlic and cook just until fragrant, about 30 seconds. Remove from the heat. Stir in the orange juice, basil, and lemon and orange zests. Season the sauce, to taste, with salt.

The bagna cauda sauce can be made 1 day ahead. Cool, then cover and refrigerate. Rewarm before using.

Meanwhile, preheat oven to 200 degrees F.

Sprinkle the fish with salt and pepper and brush both sides of the fish with remaining 2 teaspoons extra-virgin olive oil. Working in 2 batches, fry the fish until just opaque in center, about 3 minutes per side. Transfer fish to platter. Cover with foil and keep warm in the oven while cooking the second batch of fish. Drizzle the sauce over and around the fish and serve.

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