Our spring subscription to walking fish began this week with a bag full of fresh mullets, also known as kingfish or whiting. My fish were small with firm, white flesh, so I wanted to cook them whole. Having never worked with mullet before, I looked for a Sicilian recipe and immediately found Triglie di Scoglio, or "red mullet in onion sauce."
Triglie di Scoglio
- five small Walking Fish mullets, gutted and whole
- flour
- two eggs, beaten
- vegetable oil
- olive oil
- two yellow onions, sliced thin
- 1/2 cup white wine or sherry vinegar
- 1/4 cup sugar
1. Cover the bottom of a pan with vegetable oil and heat until shimmering.
2. Dredge the fish in flour, then then egg mixture, then back through the flour.
3. Fry each side of the fish until golden brown. If your pan is hot, this will take less than five minutes per side. Make sure the fish is cooked through before removing.
4. Once all the fish have been fried, remove the vegetable oil, add the olive oil and heat until barely smoking.
5. Saute the onions over low heat, turning occasionally, until translucent.
6. Add the vinegar and sugar. Stir until the liquid thickens, then add salt and pepper to taste.
7. Serve the fish with the sauce or pour the sauce over the fish. Serve with lemon.
Although I later learned that the red mullet found in the Mediterranean are quite different from the sea mullet caught off the Carolina coast (the two fish aren't even in the same family), it was a quick, easy and flavorful meal. The tangy onion sauce would work well with other fish or chicken. Researchers at bestofsicily.com write that "traditionalists believe this dish is best served slightly chilled or at room temperature." After eating it at room temperature last night and cold this afternoon, I agree that it works both ways.
We ate it with mashed potatoes and stewed collard greens.
