Blackened Redfish with Fresh Tomato Sauce

The fish that sparked the craze for blackening that is so popular these days was the humble Redfish. A word of warning – this recipe is best accomplished where the smoke from the searing can be easily vented.

For the sauce:

• 3 Roma tomatoes, diced
• ½ yellow onion, minced
• 1 tsp. chopped basil
• 1 tsp. chopped cilantro
• juice of 1 lime
• 1 dash of hot sauce
• dash of salt
• couple of turns on the peppermill

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and let sit for at least half an hour at room temperature but 45 minutes to one hour is the best.

• 4 fillets of Redfish
• 1 tsp. Cayenne pepper
• 2 tsp. Paprika
• 1 tsp. Black pepper
• 1-1/2 tsp. Garlic powder
• ½ tsp. Thyme
• ½ tsp. Oregano
• 6 oz. Butter (1-1/2 sticks)

Begin heating a heavy cast-iron skillet on high. The hotter the pan, the crispier the end product. Combine dry ingredients. Gently melt the butter in a separate pan, reserve more then half for later use. Dip the fillets in 1/3 of the butter, than coat them in the dry mix. Place coated fillets in the screeching hot pan, pouring 1/3 of reserved butter over each. Cook amid rising smoke for just shy of two minutes. Turn and pour the last 1/3 of butter over filets and cook for another short two minutes.

Serve on a bed of yellow rice, or across a grilled polenta cake. Spoon sauce generously on top. Garnish with chopped basil and cilantro and a lime wedge.