Paleo Fish Piccata

I really do try recipes from chefs and cooks that are not Melissa D'Arabian.  Really, I do.  It is just that she is already so economically minded, and she had some VERY sumptuous recipes for not a lot of money.  She has already put so much of the legwork into making the recipes easy, and I just plain seem to like so many of her recipes that I think we have similar taste buds going on.

Here is the Fish Piccata recipe upon which I based my recipe:  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/melissa-darabian/fish-piccata-recipe/index.html

I have been making her Fish Piccata recipe for a few years now, and I had missed it in my Paleo meal planning rotation.  I have tried it a few times, and believe that I have come up with the final recipe that I will be using from now on.

Swai Fillets  - 1 bag (6 medium fillets in a bag)                                  $ 5.49
Coconut flour -  2 heaping table spoons                                              $   .65
Bacon grease - saved from making bacon                                           $   .20
Capers  - 2 tbsp                                                                                   $   .50
2 large lemons - juiced                                                                        $   .50
1/4 to 1/2 cup white wine                                                                    $   .65
2 tbsp butter                                                                                         $   .15
                                                                                         TOTAL = $  8.14

Paired with this, I served a salad:
1/2 an artisan lettuce container                                                            $  1.00
Handful of black olives                                                                       $    .30
1 large carrot, grated                                                                            $   .15
1 tbsp almond meal                                                                             $    .10
dressing                                                                                               $    .10
                                                                                         TOTAL = $  1.65

And an onion/mushroom mash-up (sautéed until caramelized)
3 Onions, mandolined into rings                                                          $  .60
1 8oz clamshell mushrooms, sliced                                                      $1.59
2 tbsp butter                                                                                         $  .15
                                                                                        TOTAL =  $ 2.34

8.14+1.65+2.34 =  $12.13 for an abundant and delicious meal for my entire family!!  :-)

Take your fish fillets, and rinse them, then pat them very dry.  Salt and pepper them before dredging in coconut floor.  TAP OFF ANY EXCESS FLOUR!! Coconut flour absorbs more than other flours, so if you do not want your fish to be greasy, do not leave anything more than a thin film of coconut flour on your fish.  Also, do not give it a load of grease to absorb.  This took a few tries in my kitchen before I stopped putting the entire amount of frying oil in my pan at the outset.  You can use coconut oil or olive oil too, but I like the flavor that I get when I use bacon drippings.

Okay, so in a large pan, put only enough bacon drippings to cover the bottom of the pan in a very thin layer.  Once the drippings are heated, put your fillets in.  It will take about 3 minutes on each side to cook the fish thoroughly and cook the flour to golden.

I had three rounds of cooking, and I added a very little amount of bacon grease between batches of fish.

Once the fish is all done and set aside, pour white wine in your pan to de-glaze, stirring what will become the sauce until it is a little bit smooth.  I am never able to make it completely smooth, because there are crispy bits of flour in the mix, but I make it as smooth and integrated as I can before adding the capers and lemon juice. This will take about a minute.

When I get the capers out of the jar, I do not drain them.  I keep the caper juice in the spoon, so it adds a dimension of flavor to the sauce.

I wound up using half the lemon juice, because the lemons were really big!  I used the leftover juice to add flavor to a gallon of drinking water.

Plate your fish and spoon some of the sauce on each fillet and enjoy!  (I did not add the chopped parsley because I did not have any)

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