Hot and Sour Grilled Fish Fillets

I get a lot of questions about how to cook fish fillets from people who are looking for something a little different, something to break the pattern of  baking it with cracker crumbs (not that that isn’t great!)  This is my favorite way to prepare skinless fillets because it has three flavors I especially love: hot sauce, citrus and cilantro.  Sometimes I’ll switch the lemon out for limes, substitute the sriracha for a different chili pepper sauce, and if I don’t have fresh cilantro on hand I won’t hesitate to make it without or I’ll use fresh parsley. But this particular combination, successful in the oven as well as on the grill, is a simply fantastic recipe.

For cooking skinless fish fillets on the grill, I use one of the best grill investments I’ve ever made – my hinged grill basket. It makes it simple to grill skinless fillets, while infusing tremendous savoury and grilled flavor!  It makes the fish easy to grill instead of a challenge, and a good one will withstand even harsh New England outdoor weather for years. To get your hinged grill rack ready for the fish, brush it clean and put a light coating of cooking oil on it.

While preheating a grill to 350 degrees, prepare the fish:

Hot and Sour Grilled Fish Recipe:

• 1 skinless captains cut firm white-flesh fish fillet per person (about 5 ” in length and an inch thick)
• 1/2 tablespoon olive oil per fillet
• 6 very thin slices of lemon per fillet
• Several dots sriracha chili sauce per fillet
• 6 or so fresh cilantro leaves per fillet
• 1 medium clove garlic per fillet,  minced
• Salt and pepper to taste

Toss the fish fillets and lemon slices in the olive oil. The oiled slices of lemon keep the fish moist and also give a great tang to the cooked fish. The fish I used here was Atlantic Striped Bass, but other firm white fleshed fish works well too. Depending on how many fillets you are cooking, arrange in the basket but do not crowd – leave some space all around each fillet so they will cook evenly.

Shingle  3 lemon slices on the bottom of the greased grill rack, allowing enough length to protect the fillet. Add a few torn leaves of fresh cilantro, and about 3 dots of sriracha per lemon slice.  Add a good sprinkle of kosher salt and some freshly ground black pepper.

Put the fillet of fish on top of that, sprinkle on some minced garlic, a few more torn leaves of cilantro and several more small dots of sriracha.

Sprinkle on some more salt and pepper, then cover with three more slices of oiled lemon. Close and secure the grill basket, making sure the fish is held firmly, but not smooshed.

Put the grill basket on the preheated grill and cook, with the grill cover partially down,  for 8 to 10 minutes.

When the fish starts to become visably opaque, flip the basket.

Continue to cook for another 5 to 8 minutes, and then check for doneness.

To check for doneness, unhinge the grill basket, and with a fork see if the fish flakes easily and has cooked through it’s thickest part. If all is opaque, the fish is done, but allow a few minutes of standing time for the fish to fully complete cooking. The time to cook the fish may be as much as twenty minutes – this is a fairly low heat method, but the fillets will be juicy and not dry. Don’t be tempted to kick up the flame – you could easily ruin your fish by doing that!

Carefully remove the fish from the basket and either serve with the lemon slices or without. Enjoy!