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crispy skinned snapper with a fennel citrus and black olive salad
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SEAFOOD

Crispy-Skinned Snapper with a Fennel, Citrus and Black Olive Salad

By Stephen La Rosa

Pan-seared snapper with shatter-crisp skin over a bright winter salad of shaved fennel, orange, grapefruit and Kalamata olives, dressed with an anchovy vinaigrette. Light but built for the colder months.

Crispy-Skinned Snapper with a Fennel, Citrus and Black Olive Salad
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Prep 15 minutes
Cook 15 minutes
Total 30 minutes
Servings 2
Difficulty
Ingredients
  • 400 g snapper 2 fillets, skin on
  • 1 bulb fennel with fronds
  • 1 orange
  • 1 ruby grapefruit
  • 16 Kalamata olives no more, no less

Vinaigrette

  • 30 g lemon juice
  • 90 g extra virgin olive oil
  • 4 anchovy fillets
  • salt and chilli flakes to taste
Instructions

For the Salad

  • Remove the green tops from the fennel, saving the fronds for garnish and the stalks for stock. Cut each wedge on an angle to remove the core, then slice thin strips of fennel from root to stalk end. Set aside in a large mixing bowl.
  • Zest one orange over the sliced fennel. Cut a flat edge off the top and bottom of the fruit, stand it flat, and slice away the peel and pith following the fruit's curve.
  • Cut the peeled orange into quarters, then bite-sized pieces, removing any seeds. Repeat with the second orange and the grapefruit. Add all the citrus to the fennel.
  • Alternatively, once peeled, cut between the white membranes separating each segment to release clean citrus supremes. Add these to the fennel, saving any juice for the vinaigrette.

For the Vinaigrette

  • Combine up to 30ml of lemon juice with 15ml of the reserved citrus juice in a small jar, then add the olive oil.
  • Finely mince the anchovies and add to the jar with half a teaspoon of chilli flakes and a generous pinch of salt. Seal and shake to combine.

For the Fish

  • Bring the fillets to room temperature and pat dry with paper towel to remove surface moisture.
  • Heat a non-stick or cast iron pan over high heat and add 3 tablespoons of neutral oil once hot.
  • Season the fish well on both sides with salt. Lay the fillets skin-side down into the centre of the pan, away from you. A fish weight or a smaller clean pan pressed on top helps it cook evenly.
  • Cook 2-3 minutes, until about 80% cooked through. If it needs longer, shift to an unused part of the pan and keep going until only the top centimetre still looks translucent.
  • Flip and cook the other side for no more than 30 seconds, less if the fillet is thin.
  • Drain skin-side up on a paper-towel-lined tray.
  • Serve over the salad immediately, while the fish is still hot and the skin is still crackling.
Equipment
  • Chef's Knife
  • Chopping board
  • Non-Stick Pan
  • Fish Spatula
Recipe Notes
Snapper can be swapped for sea bass, bream, mackerel or mahi mahi, anything you'd want to eat the skin on. The salad works just as well with skinless fish too, don't let that stop you. For the full breakdown on crisping fish skin properly, see the technique guide.
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From the Chef

This salad works because fennel and sharp citrus already play well together, and the anchovy and olive bring in a mineral, salty backbone that keeps everything from tasting too clean. The chilli lifts it further, the herbs add freshness on top. It’s built to pair with any well-seared fish, snapper, sea bass, bream, mackerel, mahi mahi, whatever you’ve got where the skin is worth eating. Crisping that skin properly is its own small technique: dry the fish thoroughly, get the pan properly hot first, and don’t touch it while it’s cooking.

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