I’ve talked about this simple recipe at the markets. For me its pure nostalgia. I spent nearly 6 months travelling around Central America on my way back to NZ after my nearly 10 years away. The Sazón snapper takes me straight back to when I was eating for the first time in a grass hut on a small Nicaraguan beach. The beans and rice dish was a staple at the organic farm where I worked. This is so easy lovely and fresh. Plus its bursting with flavour.
Two/three large snapper fillets (500 g)
Opito Bay Sazón Seasoning
1 red onion
1 green capsicums
2 large tomatoes
1 lemon
1 tbsp red wine vinegar
3 tbsp olive oil
Take 2/3 good sized snapper fillets. Cut each fillet into 4 roughly even pieces. Take a medium sized bowl and add the snapper plus around a desert spoon of Sazón seasoning. Toss until well coated and pop in fridge.
Take a cup and half of plain white rice, you can use wild or brown but I find there is enough crunch and fibre with the other ingredients. Add to salted boiling water, and boil till cooked through. Whilst the rice is cooking, chop 1 medium red onion, 1 green capsicum and 2 large ripe tomatoes. Add to large bowl and add tin of black beans.
Combine 3 tablespoons of good olive oil to one tablespoon of red wine vinegar. Add the juice of 1 lemon. A pinch of sugar and season generously with Opito Bay natural Sea salt and pepper. Whisk. Add to the beans mix.
Add the fish to medium hot frypan and lightly brown (2-3 minutes). Drain cooked rice and refresh under cold water. The rice should be luke warm.
Combine rice with bean mixture and vinaigrette.
Serve the cooked fish on top of the bean salad, garnish with fresh coriander.
I sometimes also make a quick salsa of chopped tomato onion and chilli for some extra heat. You can add corn or other veges to the rice and beans. It’s that simple and delicious!
