Sour cream sauce is standard throughout Eastern Europe, and it’s not as bland as you might think or as you might have experienced. The dish should be quite sour, for one thing, and a bit hot—if your paprika has little flavor, either buy a new supply or spike it with cayenne—and it should be finished with fresh herbs. Serve this over rice or buttered noodles or with crusty bread.

　　

Ingredients

makes 4 servings

　　1 1/2 to 2 pounds fillets of red snapper, halibut, or grouper, skinned and cut into 1-inch cubes

　　1/4 cup fresh lemon juice

　　Salt and black pepper

　　3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

　　1 small onion, chopped

　　1/2 cup sour cream

　　1/2 cup fish stock, preferably homemade (page 161), or water

　　2 teaspoons hot paprika, plus more to taste

　　1/4 cup chopped fresh dill leaves

　　1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley leaves

　　

Step 1

Toss the fish in a bowl with the lemon juice and some salt and pepper.

　　

Step 2

Put the oil in a large skillet with a lid, preferably nonstick, and place over medium-high heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring occasionally, until softened, about 5 minutes. Stir in the sour cream and stock and lower the heat to medium-low to maintain a gentle simmer. Add the fish with its marinade, cover, and cook until a thin-bladed knife passes through the fish with just a little resistance, about 5 minutes.

　　

Step 3

Stir in the paprika and dill and simmer until the sauce thickens slightly. Taste and adjust the seasoning, garnish with the parsley, and serve hot.

　　

Baked Fish in Paprika Sour Cream

Step 4

Preheat the oven to 450°F. Use the oil (or, better still, softened butter) to grease a baking dish or casserole. Toss the fish with the salt, pepper, lemon juice, onion, paprika, and dill. Stir in the sour cream and just 1/4 cup fish stock. Place in the baking dish and bake, uncovered, until the fish flakes when probed with a fork, about 10 minutes. Garnish with parsley and serve.

　　The Best Recipes in the World by Mark Bittman. © 2005 by Mark Bittman. Published by Broadway Books. All Rights Reserved.MARK BITTMAN is the author of the blockbuster The Best Recipes in the World (Broadway, 2005) and the classic bestseller How to Cook Everything, which has sold more than one million copies. He is also the coauthor, with Jean-Georges Vongerichten, of Simple to Spectacular and Jean-Georges: Cooking at Home with a Four-Star Chef. Mr. Bittman is a prolific writer, makes frequent appearances on radio and television, and is the host of The Best Recipes in the World, a 13-part series on public television. He lives in New York and Connecticut.