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11/04/1999 Archived Entry: "Salt-Seared Swordfish with Garlic and Mint"

I’ve recently gotten requests for more fish and seafood recipes on this web-site. I like to accommodate, so you’ll find one of my favorite fish recipes in this entry today. It’s for thin slices of swordfish (they must be thin), seared in a skillet on a bed of sea salt, then dressed with raw minced garlic, the best extra-virgin olive oil you can get your hands on, and dried (please, not fresh) mint. It’s incredibly easy to prepare, and the only time-consuming part is mincing the garlic. Please, please, please, do not do this chore more than an hour or two (or so) ahead of time. The garlic flavor will change for the worse.

For the record, there are five other fish or shellfish recipes on The Food Maven right now:

In the new section of More Favorite Radio Recipes, there’s salmon croquettes and salmon ceviche (citrus marinated salmon). The salmon ceviche recipe is actually on the site twice. It is also featured in “When Raw Fish Really Isn’t,” my Maven’s Diary item of June 3.

In my Diary entry of August 4, I confessed my embarrassment about Insalata di Mare not being in my book, Naples At Table, explained why, and gave the missing recipe.

On September 21, I offered a dish I cobbled together for dinner one night – Fish in Red Pepper and Tomato Sauce.

And, finally, on October 26, I wrote out my recipe for Oreganata Crumbs, the topping for Baked Clams or Mussels. (There are other uses, too.)

Let me remind you, that whenever you want to find out what’s here on the Food Maven, plug a keyword in the search engine (the blank box in the red bar at the top of every page) and see what it comes up with. For the most part, it works.

Salt-seared Swordfish with Garlic and Mint
Serves 2

You have to love salt and raw garlic to love this dish. You can make it with herbs other than dried mint -- for instance, fresh, finely chopped sage -- but I like the mint best. Coarse sea salt is essential and it’s now available in most supermarkets. Condiment quality extra-virgin olive oil and wine vinegar are needed, too. When a dish has so few ingredients, it’s particularly important for them to be of the best quality you can afford. If the amount of oil puts you off, relax. Much of it can remain in the serving dish, although I’d sop it up with some bread.

This is one of those fish dishes that goes well with both red and white wines. Any rich, crisp white wine is fine -- such as the Vernaccia di San Gimignano that was this week’s Wine Buy of the Week, or a Sauvignon Blanc from either California or France (Sancerre, for instance). If red is your choice, keep it light, such as a Valpolicella from Italy.

6 to 8 large cloves garlic, finely minced
1 tablespoon sieved dried mint (see note)
6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
2, 1/4- to 1/2-inch thick swordfish steaks
2 tablespoons coarse sea salt


On a platter, combine the garlic, mint, olive oil and vinegar. Crush the garlic as you blend the raw sauce with a fork.

Cut the skin off the swordfish and discard.

Sprinkle the salt evenly over the bottom of a no-stick or cast iron skillet and place over high heat. Don’t worry if the salt pops a bit. That’s actually an indication that it has gotten hot enough.

When the pan is very hot, place the swordfish on top of the salt and cook for about 3 minutes. Turn the fish and cook another 2 or 3 minutes, or until done to taste.

When the fish is cooked to taste, lift it off from the pan with tongs or a fork and, if desired, brush off any large pieces of salt that still cling to it.

Place the fish on the platter and turn it to coat with the raw sauce. Spoon some of the sauce on top of the fish and serve immediately.

Note: Rub dried mint leaves through a fine sieve to get 1 tablespoon of mint powder.