Simple Spice Rubs for Fabulous Fish

Hello it's Darryl Mickler and delicious fresh fish can be enhanced by many preparations ranging from the simple to complex.

One simple, yet delicious method for creating new flavors in your kitchen is to use spice rubs.

Indian cooks are experts at coating fish with tasty spice blends. They can either be coated with spice rubs an hour or two before cooking as a marinade or added immediately before cooking for a more subtle flavor.

One of the best things about spice blends is that they allow for endless experimentation. With a little practice, you can take one of our recipes below and create your own signature recipe that will have your guests begging for your secret.

The most important thing to remember about spices is the fresher the better! Never buy more than you can use in six months and try to purchase them from a store that turns their inventory over regularly.

Indian and Middle Eastern stores often have the freshest spices. Always store them away from heat and light in an air-tight container. For maximum flavor, consider grinding your own spices as you need them. When I am cooking, I lightly toast whole spices in a dry saute pan by tossing them over moderate heat until they are fragrant (don't let them scorch). Then I let them cool slightly and grind in a small electric coffee grinder that I keep just for spices. Coat the fish to your taste then grill in a lightly oiled grill or bake in a moderate oven.

Try some of these recipes the next time you bake or grill fish. Feel free to experiment!

Lemon Pepper:
5 lemons
1 cup black peppercorns
Preheat oven to 225 degrees

- Zest lemons then place the zest on a dry baking sheet and bake in oven until dry (1 hour or so).
- Combine lemon zest and black pepper in a grinder and grind until the mixture is the consistency of ground pepper.
- Store in an airtight container away from heat and light.

Blackening Spice:
2 Tablespoons Sweet Paprika
2 teaspoons Onion powder
2 teaspoons garlic powder
3/4 teaspoon ground coriander
3/4 teaspoon sea salt
1/4 teaspoon cayenne
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
1/4 teaspoon white pepper

- Combine all, coat fish as desired.
- Sear in a dry or lightly oiled pan until done.

Asian Style Spiced Salt:
2 Tablespoons star anise
2 cinnamon sticks, broken
3 Tablespoons Szechuan Peppercorns
2 Tablespoons cloves
2 teaspoons cumin seed
1 teaspoon celery seed
1/2 cup kosher salt

- Toast the whole spices together until fragrant.
- Grind all the spices together until they have the consistency of ground pepper. Add the salt and pulse grinder to mix thoroughly

Curry Style Spice Blend:
2 cups whole coriander seed
1/4 Cup whole cumin seed
1/8 Cup whole fenugreek
1/8 Cup whole fennel seed
1/4 Cup whole mustard seed
1/2 Tablespoon. whole white peppercorn
3/4 Cups whole cloves
1/2 tablespoon ground turmeric
1/8 cup ground cayenne Pepper

- Toast all the whole spices, cool, then grind together
- Season your favorite fish with curry powder and sea salt.
- Sear, bake or grill until done.



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