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    Home » Recipe

    Published: Jan 24, 2023 · Modified: Jan 7, 2025 by maxcozzi · This post may contain affiliate links · 332 Comments

    pan seared rockfish with wild rice

    I love fish with wild rice, something about the savory salty flavor of the sea with comfort of popped wild rice is simply magical. Wild rice and mushrooms is already a classic dish but the additional of pan seared rockfish (or any small whitefish) makes it a rounded meal.

    pan seared rockfish with wild rice

    This is a great meal to put on the menu for a small dinner party or family gathering because it serves on one dish, although a side salad or some roasted veggies wouldn't hurt. Because wild rice takes a while to cook, you can put it on the back burner and once your guests arrive quickly pan sear the fish and it's all ready to go.

    If you are not already familiar with wild rice, it is a lovely grain that has a nutty flavor with a slightly chewy texture. It is originally from the northern great lakes region, which I used to travel to frequently and remember picking up bags of it from the Native American vendors there. It is a delicacy on its own, but goes well with a pat of butter or two on top as well.

    side salads to serve with pan seared rockfish and wild rice

    • arugula salad
    • hazelnut salad
    pan seared rockfish with wild rice

    Pan Seared Rockfish with Wild Rice

    1 from 1 vote
    Print Pin Rate
    Prep Time: 5 minutes minutes
    Cook Time: 1 hour hour 15 minutes minutes
    Total Time: 1 hour hour 20 minutes minutes
    Author: Max Cozzi
    Servings: 4
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    Ingredients

    • 2 cups crimini mushrooms, (or other mushrooms, quatered)
    • splash a olive oil
    • 2 shallots, (minced)
    • 5 cloves garlic, (minced, divided)
    • 2 cups wild rice,
    • 8 cups water
    • 8 tablespoon butter, (divided)
    • 2 tablespoon fresh thyme, (leaves plucked and chopped)
    • 4 small rockfish fillets (or other flat whitefish such as sole)
    • sea salt, (to taste)
    • fresh pepper and lemon wedges, (for serving)

    Instructions

    • Heat a small saucepan to medium-high and saute the mushrooms with a splash of olive oil and salt until the mushrooms are well browned and reduced in size, about 7-8 minutes. Then, add half of the butter and garlic, shallot, wild rice and water and bring to a boil. Season with salt and pepper, turn the heat to low and cover and cook for 1 hour. Drain and set aside.
    • When the rice is close to done, heat a fry pan to medium-high and melt the remaining butter and garlic with the thyme leaves and gently saute the rockfish fillets on both sides for about 2 minutes per side depending on the thickness of the fillets. Season with salt and pepper.
    • Scoop the wild rice onto individual serving dishes and top with the fish. spoon any remaining pan butter onto to the fish and serve with lemon wedges.
    Course: dinner, lunch
    Cuisine: American, pacific northwest
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    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. Nick says

      October 23, 2024 at 6:52 pm

      1 star
      This recipe is all wrong. Wayyyy too much water in the rice. Horrible.

      Reply
    1 from 1 vote

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    Max Cozzi, the creator of Redwood Kitchen food blog

    Hi, I'm Max! Welcome to Redwood Kitchen, where you will find tasty and approachable recipes. I am inspired by life in the PNW, from the Mediterranean climate to the asian influenced culinary scene.

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