This cheesy mixed seafood gratin is a comforting dish your whole family will
love. Serve it with grilled baguette slices as an appetizer, as a stand alone main course or to top a baked
potato or pasta.
I tend to buy seafood, at least when I don’t buy it fresh, in bags where
it’s been flash frozen in individual pieces because that makes it easy to
thaw and cook exactly what you need.
The problem with this system, if it can even be called a system, is that
sometimes I have one fish fillet or a handful of shrimp - or whatever - at
the end of the bag. That’s when this tasty recipe comes in handy.
Use whatever seafood you have! Crab meat, shrimp, any sort of boneless fish
– smoked or not, scallops, mussels, even lobster meat, if you are so lucky.
I’d probably draw the line at octopus or squid since they can be chewy when
overcooked.
Cheesy Mixed Seafood Gratin
One more suggestion for serving this cheesy mixed seafood gratin: Add some
frozen peas or even diced carrots, bake it topped with mashed potatoes
instead of the breadcrumbs and call it fish pie, another warm and comforting
dish. I love the versatility of this dish!
Ingredients
1/2 cup or 113g butter
2 small stalks celery
1/2 medium onion
1/2 green bellpepper
1 red chili pepper (optional)
2 large cloves garlic
1/2 cup or 63g flour
2 cups or 473ml milk
8 oz or 226g cream cheese, at room temperature
2 fillets fish (about 3 1/2 – 4 1/4 oz or 100-120g each – I used one
tilapia, one salmon
1 lb 1 2/3 oz or 500g shrimps, already peeled and deveined
3 1/2 oz or 100g smoked salmon
1 tablespoon sherry
Fine sea salt
Freshly ground black pepper
For topping:
1/2 cup, packed, or 60g fresh breadcrumbs
3 oz or 85g Parmesan, grated
3 oz or 85g mozzarella, grated
drizzle olive oil
Optional to garnish:
Chopped flat leaf parsley
Method
Remove the hard strings and cut the celery into small cubes. Peel and dice
the onion. Dice the green pepper, red pepper and mince the garlic.
Heat half of the butter over a low to medium flame, preferably in a pan that
can go into the oven later. No one wants more washing up.
Sauté the vegetables in the butter until they’ve softened, about 5-7
minutes.
Once it’s all added, cook for a minute or two to get rid of the floury
flavor.
Preheat your oven to 350°F or 180°C.
Turn off the heat under the pan and stir the milk in a little at a time
stirring well so you don’t create any lumps.
Add in the sherry and season to taste with sea salt (if you are using salty
smoked fish you might not need any) and few good grinds of black pepper.
Stir well.
Serve on grilled bread, as topping for a baked potato or cooked pasta, or
even on its own - with fresh veggies or a green salad to complete the
meal.
Enjoy!
This month my Friday Fish Foodie friends are sharing comfort food recipes made with seafood. Many thanks to our host, Sue of Palatable Pastime and our chief organizer Wendy of A Day in the Life on the Farm. Check out all the wonderful dishes!
- Bourride from A Day in the Life on the Farm
- Cheesy Mixed Seafood Gratin from Food Lust People Love
- Crab and Rice Croquettes from Palatable Pastime
- Creamy Crab Soup from Karen's Kitchen Stories
- Creamed Salmon from Sid's Sea Palm Cooking
- East Indian Fried Dry Bombil Masala from Sneha's Recipe
- Fish Po' Boy Sandwich from Making Miracles
- Popcorn-Battered Fried Fish, Remembering Oklahoma, and Kids in the Kitchen from Culinary Adventures with Camilla