Spiced Tilapia with Roasted Pepper-Tomatillo Sauce

How's that for another mouthful? Like we did with the Mongolian Beef recipe, Darrell and I have shortened the name of this one--we call it our Pepper Tomatillo Tilapia--but I think the full name of this one is super fun and an apt description of the recipe.

And yes, it might make it seem a little intimidating--and perhaps rightfully so. I honestly don't even know what compelled me to cut this out of a magazine years and years ago; never before had I heard of or cooked with tomatillos, so there was no possible way that I could predict what it would taste like. The only thing I can think of is that it must have had a really enticing picture. Or because it included a beer-pairing suggestion with with recipe (which, for the record, is a wheat beer with a tart lemon quality). But, whatever the reason, I'm glad I clipped it, because we love this recipe. It is a little time consuming because you have to wait for the pepper to roast, but it's so worth it. I have seen jarred roasted red peppers in the store recently; I imagine that using those would expedite the process but I'm not sure how they would affect the taste.

Which, by the way, the taste is fantastic. I absolutely love the sauce and need to find other ways to use it--although I always end up putting tons of it on my fish so there is never any leftover!

Spiced Tilapia with Roasted Pepper-Tomatillo Sauce
(not a clue where it came from!)

Sauce
1 large red bell pepper
2 tsp canola oil
1 cup finely chopped tomatillo
1/4 tsp salt
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tbsp chopped fresh cilantro
1 tsp rice vinegar
1 tsp honey

Fish
2 tbsp flour
2 tsp chili powder
1/2 tsp dried oregano
1/4 tsp ground cumin
4 6-oz tilapia fillets (we usually just do two and puts lots of sauce on them)
1/4 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 tsp canola oil

For the sauce, begin by preheating the broiler. Cut the bell pepper in half lengthwise and discard seeds and membranes. Place the pepper halves, skin sides up, on a foil lined baking sheet and flatten with hand if necessary. Broil 15 minutes or until blackened.

Place in a ziploc bag and let it stand for at least ten minutes. Remove from the bag and peel off the skin. Cut into chunks. Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the tomatillo to the pan, cook six minutes or until tender. Add salt and garlic; cook one minute.

Transfer to a blender or food processor with all sauce ingredients. Blend until smooth (if possible, remove the center piece of lid and cover with a paper towel so some heat can escape if necessary). Wipe pan with a paper towel (you'll use it again for the fish).

For the fish, combine the flour through cumin in a shallow dish and mix well. Sprinkle fish with salt and pepper, then dredge in the flour mixture. Heat oil over medium high heat and cook fish two minutes or until lightly browned. Carefully turn and cook four minutes more. Serve with sauce.

This is another great two-person prep recipe. I'm usually in charge of peeling the peppers once they've cooled, and while I'm doing that Darrell takes care of getting the tomatillos cooked. Once those are done, I work on getting the rest of the sauce ingredients put together and blended while Darrell cooks the fish. But again, even if just one person is doing all the work, it really isn't that time-consuming. I have learned (thanks to my dear husband) that recipes are easier to work through if you have all the ingredients prepped beforehand--and with this particular recipe, it's really easy to get the tomatillos cut, the flour mixture for the fish, and the remaining sauce ingredients put together all while the red peppers are roasting. Then it's just a handful of steps to completion and you've got a tasty meal on the table!