Red Snapper Redo


I love red snapper. There's no other fish that inspires the joy and anticipation that this mild, flavorful aquatic dish provides for me. I can not resist ordering  fresh red snapper whenever I'm in the Caribbean or Latin America. Served with rice and peas, plantains or yucca, red snapper is the equivalent of  a comforting embrace, spiked with bursts of laughter.  I have a difficult time ignoring it whenever I see it on any menu so I was faced with a bizarre dilemma in St. Kitts. Every single restaurant I visited for dinner, featured a tempting version of red snapper.  So when I sunk my toes into the sands at Mr. X's Shiggedy Shack beach lounge, I just had to order the red snapper grilled with lemon and thyme, above.



When I dipped into the gorgeous, sun-dappled Spice Mill restaurant, I just couldn't ignore the spice-rubbed red snapper, topped with pineapple salsa, above.


When I joined with the gang  for dinner at the swanky Blu seafood restaurant at the St. Kitts Marriott above, the steamed red snapper was just calling to me. By the fourth day, I had munched on the tasty fish four days in a row and although I never grow tired of it, I felt that I was missing out on a potentially sensational Kittittian dish by focusing on red snapper. So I forced myself to not order red snapper on my last night in St. Kitts. Part of the problem is that I don't eat red meat or shellfish so my choices just weren't as exciting as red snapper for me. But I did it.  Rafael, a gregarious Dominican chef whipped up a special dish just for me. What was it? Another favorite mainstay, pasta. It wasn't very Kittitian but it was good. Do you have a favorite food that you just have to eat during your travels?

Comments

Red snapper rules! I love fish, cooked in any way and those photos made me hungry this morning. I'll probably pop by the fishmonger's on Saturday to buy some sardines. :-) Grilled sardines on the menu!

Many thanks for such a succulent post.

Greetings from London.
MinnieRunner said…
Red snapper, I'll keep that in mind so that I could try it next time :)
Fly Girl said…
Cubano, red snapper rules indeed!
Minnie, I highly recommend it.
eden said…
Oh my.. you make me drools..lolz. I love red snapper too. I usually cook it for soup and sometimes eat it fresh with vinegar and spices..Yum!
Fly Girl said…
Eden, oh with vinegar and spices is called escoveitch in the Caribbean and I love it that way too!
Jean-Luc Picard said…
I haven't had red snapper before, but after seeing it there, I'm tempted to.
Fly Girl said…
Jean-Luc, give into your temptsation! You'll love it.
Mary R said…
You always have the best food posts!

In Tokyo, I have so many favorites that I have an agenda totally revolving around the restaurants I have to eat at. My latest obsession there are these baked mochi donuts... they always have a "seasonal" donut that I'm curious about, and it never disappoints.
Fly Girl said…
Mary, thanks! baked mochi donuts, I will look that up!
I like to try a variety of local foods when I travel (though that's made harder by being vegetarian). But if I find somewhere I love, I'll go back to the same cafe/restaurant day after day :)
Cate said…
I don't go for fish that often but when it comes to red snapper, I'm all in. Love this fish. St Kitts is on my list thanks to your delicious posts.
Fly Girl said…
Cate, red snapper is definitely the fish to love if you don't like any other!

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