Any Good Stuffed Fish/Chicken Recipes?

[Natasha]

After an absolutely insane day today http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/tongue.gif , I went out for dinner with a dear friend tonight. We both had the stuffed trout. It was stuffed with shrimp, crabmeat, mushrooms, and maybe something else, all in a crumbly (but not too buttery or oily) mixture. The fish itself was succulent too. Come to think of it, the warm, fresh rolls and (also warm) large garlic croutons for munching were addictive too, and the glass of Orvieto, the bountiful salad and the baked potato with rock salt didn t do me any harm either...But I digress.

I would like to make something like the stuffed fish at home, but have never made anything like it before. Does anyone have a good stuffed fish recipe? Stuffed chicken would be fine, too, because I m more interested in the filling than anything. While there must be recipes out there in the great big Internet world, I would rather use a recipe recommended by one of you http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif. If not, I will just experiment and see how it turns out! It shouldn t be too difficult. This would be a lovely, impressive-looking and tasting dish for a special dinner or a small party.

[This message has been edited by Natasha (edited 01-17-2001).]

[RUSTYSMOM]

Hi Natasha - sounds like a great night!! There were a series of stuffed chicken recipes which were great. I have made the artichoke and goat cheese stuffed chicken breast a few times. Check under the search key - I think you will come up with some great ideas. I have not seen anything on stuffed fish. SOudns good though!

[Natasha]

Rustysmom,

Thank you! I didn t bother to run a search the way I usually do (bad girl! bad!) because I thought I would have recalled a thread on this topic. But silly me, there was a whole thread on stuffed chicken recipes (though I m getting an Error message when I try to access it), plus other threads with recipes. http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/redface.gif I guess I ignored them because I don t eat chicken! http://www.cookinglight.com/bbs/smile.gif I will check them out and work out something with the ingredients used in this trout. Thanks again.

[Peggy]

Natasha,

I can recommend a fabulous recipe for Stuffed Halibut in Phyllo Dough. It is very impressive and perfect for an elegant dinner party. I have made it several times, most recently at our black-tie New Year's Eve dinner party. The only problem is it definately isn't "light". It also takes quite a bit of preparation, however it is perfect for a special occasion. The Onion Cream Sauce is a great compliment to the dish. Though you may be looking for a lighter recipe, I'm going to post it anyway because the filling is very similar to what you mentioned.

Stuffed Halibut in Phyllo (from the Alaska Heritage Seafood Cookbook)

3 T olive oil
1 large onion, finely chopped
1/2 lb mushrooms, chopped
1/2 lb scallops, diced
1/2 pound shrimp, diced
1/2 lb crab meat (I use dungenous crab)
1/2 teas dried oregano
1/4 teas dried basil
1 teas granulated garlic (I use minced)
salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
1/2 cup (about) dry bread crumbs
12 boneless halibut slices, 4 oz each, cut 1/4-1/2 inch thick and as square as possible
12 sheets (about 3/8 lb) phyllo dough
1/2 cup melted butter

Onion Cream Sauce
1 medium onion, finely chopped
1 clove garlic, chopped
1 bay leaf
5 black peppercorns
1 cup water
2 T Chablis wine (I use whatever white wine I have around)
1 T white vinegar
1/4 cup butter
1/4 cup flour
1 cup heavy cream
2/3 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
salt and white pepper to taste

To make the Onion Cream Sauce, place the onion, garlic, bay leaf, peppercorns, and water in a small saucepan. Boil for 5 minutes. Strain. Measure 1 cup. Add Chablis and vinegar.

Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan over low heat; do not allow it to brown. Slowly blend in the flour until a thick paste is formed, and cook 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Slowly stir in the cream and the onion mixture. Continue to stir until the sauce is thick, but still thin enough that it can be drizzled. Stir in the cheese. Season to taste with salt and white pepper. Keep the sauce warm in a double broiler.

To prepare stuffing, heat the olive oil in a large frying pan and saute the onion and mushrooms until brown, about 5 minutes. Add the scallops, shrimp and crabmeat, and saute until barely cooked through, 3-4 minutes. Add the oregano, basil and garlic. Taste, and adjust the seasoning with salt and pepper.

Stir in the bread crumbs and allow to rest 5 minutes off the heat. There should be enough bread crumbs to soak up all the liquid released by the seafood, but no more; add a few more bread crumbs if needed.

On a cutting board, line up half of the halibut slices. Top each with some of the stuffing, dividing it evenly among them. Top with the remaining halibut.

Preheat oven to 450 degrees.

Lay out the phyllo dough and cover it with clear plastic wrap. Using a pastry brush, butter the top of 1 sheet of phyllo. Place another sheet on top, and brush with butter. Wrap the buttered sheets around 1 halibut "sandwich". Repeat with the remaining phyllo and halibut.

Place the filled packets seam side down on a buttered baking sheet and brush with melted butter.

Place in the oven and bake 8-11 minutes. Watch carefully. When the pastry begins to turn brown, cover it with foil. When the halibut can be pierced easily with a metal skewer or the point of a knife, brush the packets again with melted butter. This increases the tenderness of the pastry). Bake for another 30 seconds. Serve hot on warmed plates that have been drizzled wth Onion Cream Sauce. Drizzle a little more sauce on top.

Makes 6 servings.

One tip: Don't make the Onion Sauce too far in advance. I did this once and put it in the refrigerator. When I tried to reheat it, it stayed very thick, even after I added nonfat milk.

If you try it, I will be intereted in hearing what you think.

Enjoy!

Peggy

[This message has been edited by Peggy (edited 01-18-2001).]

[This message has been edited by Peggy (edited 01-18-2001).]

[Natasha]

Thank you, Peggy! I m glad you went ahead and posted the recipe. The filling does sound very similar to what I had! I don t care that it s not light; as you said, it would be perfect for a special occasion. I will definitely let you know when I try it.

Cheers,
Natasha