Spatula Diaries: Pan-fried Gulf fish fillet with chunky tomato-vegetable sauce

I know I’m not alone, but there’s nothing I anticipate more than tomatoes in the summertime. Authentic tomato flavor, the kind that is simultaneously sweet and meaty, absolutely does not exist any other time of the year. That said, it seems like such a crime to let a single one go to waste.

Sauces are a great way to use several tomatoes at a time—an especially helpful strategy when they’re ripening faster than you can use them. In this sauce, I’ve cooked down a medley of fresh tomatoes with eggplant, zucchini, onions and garlic. It’s a nice accompaniment to pan-fried Gulf fish, but it’s also delicious as a vegetarian pasta sauce or a braising sauce for bone-in chicken thighs or thick-cut pork chops.

Pan-fried Gulf fish with tomato-vegetable sauce

Serves 4

For the sauce:
¼ cup olive oil
1 medium onion, diced
2 cups diced eggplant
2 cups diced zucchini
1 large or two small garlic cloves, minced
4 cups diced fresh tomatoes
1 teaspoon salt
1 teaspoon oregano
½ cup torn fresh basil leaves

Heat the olive oil to medium-high heat in a medium skillet. Add the onion, eggplant and zucchini, and sauté for 3-5 minutes until soft. Add the garlic, tomatoes, salt and oregano. Lower the heat to low and cover. Let the mixture simmer for 10 minutes, stirring occasionally, or until the vegetables are soft. Add a little water if the sauce is too chunky. Just before serving, add the basil leaves.

For the fish:
½ cup milk
1 egg
½ cup all-purpose flour
½ cup corn meal
½ teaspoon salt
½ teaspoon smoked paprika
Several turns cracked black pepper
4 4-ounce mild Gulf fish fillets such as amberjack (shown) or grouper
¼ cup olive oil

In a shallow bowl or pie plate, add the milk and egg, whisking gently to combine. In another bowl or pie plate, add the flour, corn meal, salt, smoked paprika and black pepper, stirring with a fork until combined. Dredge the fish in the wet batter first, then in the dry batter, coating evenly and shaking off any excess. Heat the olive oil in a medium skillet, add the battered fish fillets and cook about 4 minutes on each side. Let the fillets rest on paper towels. To serve, place the warm sauce on a plate and top with the fish.

Maggie Heyn Richardson is a regular 225 contributor and the author of Hungry for Louisiana, An Omnivore’s Journey. Reach her at hungryforlouisiana.com.