Rachael's Daytime Talk Show
Swordfish Cutlets With Raw Sauce -- 08/28/07

Swordfish Cutlets With Raw Sauce

Ingredients

  • 4 plum tomatoes, seeded, chopped and drained
  • 1/2 cup fresh basil, about 10-12 leaves, torn or chopped
  • 1/4 of a small red onion, finely chopped
  • Zest of 2 lemons
  • 1/2 cup flat-leaf parsley, finely chopped (a couple of handfuls)
  • 5 cloves garlic, finely chopped and 1 pasted*
  • 2 cups breadcrumbs, plain or seasoned
  • 1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
  • 4 1/2-inch-thick swordfish steaks
  • Coarse salt
  • 4-5 tablespoons of extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO), plus some for drizzling
  • *To paste garlic: Add coarse salt while you chop the garlic really fine, then smear it on the cutting board with the side of your knife.

Yields: 4 servings

Preparation

Preheat oven to 250°F.

For the raw sauce, put the tomatoes in a colander over a bowl to drain them of some of their natural liquid. This will prevent the sauce from being too watery. Once they have drained for a bit, put them into a bowl and toss them with the red onions, basil, a healthy drizzle of EVOO and lots of salt and pepper. Let the mixture marinate while you put together the swordfish cutlets.

In a shallow dish, combine lemon zest, parsley, garlic, breadcrumbs and ground pepper. Reserve.

Step

Trim all skin and any dark-colored meat from the swordfish. Take each fillet and place between two sheets of wax paper or parchment paper. Or, you can ask your fishmonger to give you some additional wrapping paper for the fish and use that. With the bottom of a skillet, gently pound the fillets to about 1/4-inch thick. Lightly salt the fillets and press them into the reserved breading mixture. Be sure to bread both sides.

Step

Heat a large non-stick skillet over medium-high heat with EVOO until it's screaming hot. Add the swordfish cutlets to the skillet, but don’t overcrowd the pan. Work in batches, if necessary. Brown the cutlets for 2 minutes on each side. If working in batches, transfer the browned cutlets to a cookie sheet and keep warm in the oven as you cook the others. Once you have browned up all the swordfish cutlets, serve them topped with the raw sauce and a side of Orange and Oregano Salad.