3 Must-Try Seafood Recipes for Every Occasion

We have seafood recipes for any occasion and for whatever your fishmonger has fresh, whether it's the season for a warm bowl of cioppino or a tray of crispy, honey-drizzled tuna croquettes. We have everything you need to make a delicious meal. Make a batch of this coconut shrimp as soon as possible (really, it is that wonderful). Alternatively, try preparing traditional ceviche at home. As you peruse our favorite recipes for mussels, monkfish, tuna, and trout the list is endless  you will have the opportunity to discover a new method of preparation or type of seafood.

1. Sauvignon Blanc-Steamed Mussels with Garlic Toast

Toasted garlic bread and mussels made with Sauvignon Blanc come together in this classic steamed mussels recipe.

Ingredients

• 4 thick slices of white peasant bread
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, plus more for brushing
• 2 garlic cloves, peeled (1 left whole, 1 thinly sliced)
• 1 medium shallot, minced
• Kosher salt
• Freshly ground black pepper
• 4 pounds mussels, scrubbed

• 1 1/2 cups Sauvignon Blanc or other dry white wine

Read also: Baking Vegan Brownies: Essential Ingredients and Techniques

Directions

Step 1

Preheat the broiler. Brush the bread with olive oil and transfer to a baking sheet. Broil the bread a few inches from the heat, turning once, for 2 minutes, until golden and toasted. Lightly rub the whole garlic clove over the toasts.

Step 2

In a large, deep pot, heat the 1/4 cup of olive oil. Add the shallot and sliced garlic, season lightly with salt and pepper, and cook over high heat, stirring, until the garlic is softened and lightly browned, about 3 minutes. 

Step 3

Add the mussels and cook, stirring, for 1 minute. Add the wine, cover, and steam the mussels until they open, about 5 minutes. Remove from the heat. 

2. Roasted Branzino with Caper Butter

Whole branzino roasted with lemon and rosemary is a foolproof way to ensure flavorful, perfectly cooked fish. A caper compound butter takes the dish over the top.

Ingredients

• One stick (four ounces) softened unsalted butter.
• One finely chopped tablespoon of capers.
• One tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice.
• One tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley.
• Kosher sodium
• 4 (1-to 1 1/4-pound) entire branzino or striped bass, guttered and scaled.
• One lemon split into eight rounds.

Read also: Easy Creamy Chicken Gnocchi Soup

Directions

Step 1

Gather the ingredients.

Step 2

Preheat oven to 425°F. In a medium bowl, mix butter with capers, lemon juice, and parsley; season with salt to taste. Hold at room temperature. 

Step 3

Season branzino cavities with salt to taste and stuff two lemon rounds and one rosemary sprig in each. Season outside of fish with salt to taste.

Step 4

In a large, nonstick skillet, heat 2 tablespoons olive oil until shimmering. Add two branzino and cook over high heat until skin is browned and crisp, flipping once, about 3 minutes per side.

3. Crispy Crab Cakes with Tomato Butter

Legendary crab cakes from Tavern on the Green by late chef Patrick Clark had a crunchy outside from panko and a burst of flavor from chopped fresh jalapeño. More taste and a fuller texture than conventional binders like breadcrumbs, chopped whitefish gives the structure in these crab cakes. Look for big lump crabmeat plastic tubs; these are fresh, unpasteurized with the greatest texture and taste. Should whitefish not be available, use sea bass or cod.

Ingredients

• Four ounces of skinless whitefish fillet.
• Three jalapeños split, seeded,
• One half a cup of mayonnaise
• One third cup finely cut scallions
• One tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley.
• Two split tablespoons of kosher salt
• 1 teaspoon black pepper, split
• One half a teaspoon cayenne pepper
• One pound fresh jumbo lump crabmeat, picked over and drained.
• One half a cup of panko
• Six tiny plum tomatoes—about one pound—cored and halved.
• Three medium-sized sliced onions.
• Three sliced medium garlic cloves
• Six teaspoons olive oil split up
• Two cups of chicken soup.

Directions

Step 1

Set the oven's temperature to 450°F. Process whitefish in a food processor until almost smooth. Then move to a big bowl. Finely chop one jalapeño; toss into a dish with fish. Add cayenne, parsley, mayonnaise, scallions, 1 teaspoon salt, half a teaspoon black pepper. Fold crabmeat gently, leaving lumps whole. Form into 3-inch-wide, 1/2-inch-thick patties after dividing mixture into 8 sections—about 1/3 cup each. Sprink panko liberally on both sides of patties to coat entirely; press gently to adhere. Thirty minutes of refrigeration.

Step 2

While patties cool, whisk together tomatoes, shallots, garlic, 1 tablespoon oil, and last two jalapeños in an ovenproof pan. About 15 minutes, roast in preheated oven until tomatoes break down. Take skillet out of the oven and set over medium on the stovetop. Add stock; simmer, stirring constantly, until most of the liquid evaporates and the mixture reduces to around 1 1/2 cups, approximately 15 minutes. Put the ingredients into a blender. Tight cover on mixer; remove center piece to let steam escape. Over opening, lay a fresh towel. Process, gradually adding butter bits through opening, until mixture is smooth and butter is blended. Keep sauce heated; season with one-half teaspoon salt and one-fourth teaspoon black pepper.