Tilapia with sautéed shitake, capers and shallots

I’m big fan of easy and healthy food. After a long day at work, it’s nice to have a fast meal without
sacrificing taste or healthy eating. You can’t go wrong with tilapia topped with sautéed organic shitake mushrooms.

You can find organic mushrooms at many farmers’ markets and some grocery stores. Dried shitake mushrooms have a richer flavor then fresh. If you opt for dried mushrooms you need to soak them in water to rehydrate them before use. The stems of the shitake mushroom are tougher then the caps and take longer to cook. In traditional Japanese cooking the stems are not used, but rather saved for making soup stock. Here is my basic vegetable stock recipe.

Shitake mushrooms have long been used as a medicinal food. They are said to aid in immune support and cardiovascular disease prevention. They are very high in vitamin D (with the sundried highest). Science of Cooking has a great article about the health benefits.

This main course takes about 15 minutes of prep time and 30 minutes of cooking time.

Here’s what you need to serve four people

1 lb. – Tilapia fillets

6 oz. – Shitake mushrooms

1/3 cup – Shallots

1 Tbs. – Capers, with brine

1 – Lemon for juice and zest

2 Tbs. – Olive oil

1/4 cup – Dry white wine

Salt

Pepper

Directions

Zest the lemon, being sure to scrape the yellow skin off, while leaving the white pith on the lemon. Set aside. This task is easy with a microplane zester/grater. You can see my favorite microplane zester in the Amazon link below.

Rinse the fish, lightly coating it with olive oil on both sides. Squeeze the juice from 1/2 the lemon onto the fish. Season the fish with salt and pepper to taste. Place in a baking dish, cover and set aside.

Start preheating your oven to 350 degrees. When the oven is heated, place the fish on the middle rack and cook until flakey, 20-30 minutes.

Prepare the topping

Thinly slice the shitake mushrooms and shallots. If the mushrooms are large, cut slices to one-inch lengths.

Heat the remaining oil (about 1-1/2 tablespoons) in a 12-inch skillet. When the oil starts to shimmer, add the mushrooms and shallots and sauté for 15 minutes. Add the wine, capers, lemon zest and the juice from the second half of the lemon. Continue to sauté the mixture until the mushrooms are soft.

To serve, split the fish between four plates and top with the mushroom mixture. Top with a sprig of parsley or cilantro as a garnish.

Round out the meal with baked or roasted potatoes and a green salad.

© Bob Mack/Luvs Good Food

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