My Love recently went to our local fisherman’s co-op and brought home a new-to-us kind of fish–hake. It was fresh and reasonably priced.

If silver hake is new to you, as well, it is described as “a close relative of the cod” by thisfish.info.

Because I’d never cooked this particular fish before, I was unsure of the seasoning that would be best suited to it. I found this recipe for Hake with Balsamic Caramelized Onions, Smoked Paprika and Thyme at Family Friends Food.

In about an hour you can have a delicious meal on the table.  There are two main components to this dish:  the onions and the fish.

Begin by caramelizing sliced onions in a little olive oil.  I used a variety because that’s what I had: one cooking onion, one Vidalia and half a Spanish onion.  I rushed it a little, by cooking on medium heat, mostly because I’m just that impatient.  Ideally the onions caramelize best low and slow.  It will take about twenty to thirty minutes.  At the end you’re supposed to add a splash of balsamic vinegar (as pointedly stated in the recipe name, but which I completely flaked on).  I enjoy the flavour of balsamic vinegar and am disappointed that I missed out on it this time.

While your onions are cooking, prepare the marinade for your fish.  I used about three tablespoons of olive oil, a spoonful of smoked paprika a handful of fresh thyme (because we have a wonderful friend who gifted us with some fresh herbs) and some salt and pepper.  Mix it up, and coat your fillets (I had two full length fillets, which I cut into thirds) with the marinade.  Cover and let it hang out till your onions are done.

Spread a lovely bed of your lovely golden onions in the bottom of a baking dish.  Top with your fish and bake at 375°F for 15-20 minutes or until cooked through.

We had basmati rice and sautéed red peppers and spinach with our fish.  It was quite delicious.  I look forward to trying some other recipes at Family Friends Food.  I will definitely be adding hake to our grocery list again.  We enjoyed the texture, flavour and the price.

Check out my Pinterest board, yum! {fish & seafood} for other recipes.