Roasted Fish with Herbs and Olive Oil (Ichthys Optos)
The Quirky Foodster Team
Ingredients
- Whole white fish (about 1 kg), cleaned — 1
- Olive oil — 3 tbsp
- Fresh oregano — 2 sprigs
- Fresh rosemary — 1 sprig
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Salt — to taste
Method
- Preheat a grill or oven to a high, steady heat.
- Rub the fish inside and out with olive oil and salt.
- Tuck the oregano and rosemary sprigs inside the cavity.
- Grill or roast for 8-10 minutes per side, until the flesh flakes easily.
- Finish with a squeeze of lemon juice and a final drizzle of olive oil before serving.
Introduction: A whole fish roasted simply over coals with olive oil and herbs, letting good fresh fish speak for itself.
Cultural Background: Fresh fish, prized above salted or preserved fish when it could be had, was most often prepared with a light hand — roasted or grilled and finished with olive oil, herbs, and a little vinegar, as praised by the food-loving poet Archestratus.
Tips: Archestratus’s own advice was famously to season good fish ‘sparingly’ — resist the urge to over-flavour a fresh catch.
Variations: A whole fish can be substituted with fillets, reducing the cooking time accordingly.
Nutrition: Approx. 320 kcal per serving.
FAQs:
Q: Who was Archestratus?
A: A 4th-century BCE Greek poet whose surviving fragments on food and fish preparation are an important source for ancient Greek cuisine.
Q: What fish suits this best?
A: Any firm, whole white fish such as sea bream or sea bass.
- Whole white fish (about 1 kg), cleaned — 1
- Olive oil — 3 tbsp
- Fresh oregano — 2 sprigs
- Fresh rosemary — 1 sprig
- Juice of 1 lemon
- Salt — to taste
Please log in to leave a comment.