When Fish Met Ciabatta Bread..

Good morning! Today, I'm happier than ever. Why? Because it's Friday!! Thank goodness, it's Friday. It's not that I had a bad week, really, but every Friday, I just feel more relaxed and jolly. My husband is coming home earlier from work and we are all going to a birthday party to one of our favorite restaurants. We're excited! I hope you all have a fantastic weekend, too!

Well, today, I'm going to post a great ciabatta bread recipe that I came across just a couple of weeks ago. I had never made any homemade buns before so I was pretty anxious to try it. I had some fish in my freezer and thought I'd make some delicious fish sandwiches for dinner.

So I started baking ciabatta bread.. I added a tiny bit of rosemary into the dough and it added a very unique flavor to the dough. I really liked it. My husband, on the other hand, prefers it without rosemary. So please don't feel obligated to add rosemary if you prefer it plain and simple. Either way, it tastes wonderful.

So the fish... a lot of people say that they don't eat fish at home because they don't know how to cook it. It's really not that hard. I wish they sold more whole fish at grocery stores because my mom used to cook it perfectly seasoned and tasty back in Korea. But I'll admit. I don't like cleaning whole fish. It is a lot of work. I don't want to touch or see fish's guts and eyes and... You get what I mean. Thank goodness, America is so good with selling fish all gutted and skinned. Back in Korea, you'll never see fish already cleaned like that. (Well, there's pros and cons to either way, I guess.) Anyway, so go and buy your favorite kind of fish... (I recommend white fish. Salmon has a strong flavor and probably not a good choice for a sandwich. But that's just my opinion.) Then flour it, dip it in beaten eggs, bread it in panko or bread crumbs, then fry it in oil. Oh it's so so yummy. Mmm.... So give it a try. The unique flavor of ciabatta bread went great with breaded fish. I'll definitely try it again sometime soon.


Ciabatta Bread:
Inspired and slightly changed from All Recipes

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups warm (not hot) water
• 1 1/2 teaspoons salt
• 1 teaspoon white sugar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 3 1/4 cups bread flour or all purpose flour
  
• 1 1/2 teaspoons yeast
• small pinch of rosemary flakes

Directions:

In larger bowl, mix the warm water, salt, white sugar, and yeast until the yeast is dissolved in water. Let stand for a few minutes.

Add olive oil, flour, and rosemary to the liquid mixture and stir until the dough isn't sticky anymore. Take the dough and knead until the dough forms a ball, about 5-8 minutes.

Grease a large bowl with olive oil and turn the dough in the bowl until the dough is coated in oil. Cover the bowl with a damp towel and let rise until the dough doubles in size, about 1-1 1/2 hours.

Lightly flour or use parchment lined baking sheets. Divide into 2 pieces, and form each into a 3x14 inch oval. Place loaves on prepared sheets, dimple surface, and lightly flour. Cover, and let rise in a draft free place for approximately 45 minutes.

Preheat oven to 425 degrees F (220 degrees C).

Dimple dough for a second time, and then place loaves in the oven, positioned on the middle rack. Bake for 25 to 30 minutes. During baking, spritz loaves with water every 5 to 10 minutes for a crispier crust.

Fish Sandwich on Ciabatta Bread

Ingredients:

1 lb white fish (tilapia, cod, sole, etc)
1/3 cup flour
2 eggs, beaten
1 cup bread crumbs or panko
salt and pepper or your favorite seasoning
1/3 cup oil

Directions:

Cut fish into 2-3 inches long pieces. Season the fish with salt and pepper. Dip it in flour, egg, then bread crumbs or panko.

Heat oil in large frying pan over high heat. Fry the breaded fish until the fish is cooked through and the breading turns golden brown, about 2 minutes each side.

Drain oil on paper toweled plate and serve on ciabatta bread as shown in the pictures above. Lettuce, sliced tomatoes, tarter sauce, or cocktail sauce go great with this sandwich.

Enjoy!!