The cooked dough looks delicious, can I eat it?

Believe me, you don't want to eat it. It's just too salty. Even the tiniest little crumb tastes like a mouthful of pure salt. Salt pastry is not meant to be consumed. It's used to encase the fish so it cooks evenly and emerges from the oven perfectly seasoned.

Will the fish be too salty?

A whole fish cooked in a salt pastry crust will be perfectly seasoned - not too salty. Most of the salt remains in the pastry and helps create the insulation that allows the fish to steam gently. The salty pastry has contact with the skin of the fish which protects the tender flesh beneath from absorbing too much salt.

Why salt pastry instead of just salt crust?

Cooking fish inside a salt crust is also a great way to cook a whole fish. Both methods will results in a very tender, well seasoned fish. But if you're cooking fish for a special occasion and you want to really wow the crowd, baked fish in salt pastry will steal the show!

What kind of fish can I use?

You want a whole fish that weighs about 2 - 2 1/2 pounds. Snapper, Branzino and Sea Bass are all great options.

How do I know when the fish is done?

You can use insert an instant read thermometer through the pastry into the thickest part of the fish to test for doneness. When the internal temperature of the fish is around 117-120°F, it's ready to come out of the oven. It will continue to cook in it's crust as it rests, and should reach a final serving temperature of between 130-135ºF. If you don't have a thermometer, no worries. Remove the fish from the oven after 25 minutes. It's best to err on the side of undercooking the fish, as you can always cook it for a few minutes longer, if necessary but an overcooked fish is not fixable.

Baked Fish In Salt Pastry

Name: Baked Fish In Salt Pastry
Prep time: 1 h 15 min
Cook time: 25 min
Total time: 1 h 40 min
Cuisine: American
Ingredients: 6 large eggs; 4 2/3 cups all-purpose flour (700 grams); 1 3/4 cups fine sea salt (500 grams); 1 1/4 cups water (300 milliliters); 1 whole red snapper (about 2 - 2 1/2 pounds) scaled, gutted and pin-boned (note 1); 1 lemon cut into 8 wedges

Description

This is a fantastic fish recipe for a special occasion. This straightforward recipe yields a perfectly cooked, whole tender juicy fish that looks like a masterpiece and tastes even more incredible than it looks. Salt pastry is not meant to be consumed. It's used to encase the fish so it cooks evenly and emerges perfectly seasoned.

Adapted from a recipe in Josh Niland's cookbook, Take One Fish.

Ingredients

Units Scale

6 large eggs
4 2/3 cups all-purpose flour (700 grams)
1 3/4 cups fine sea salt (500 grams)
1 1/4 cups water (300 milliliters)
1 whole red snapper (about 2 - 2 1/2 pounds) scaled, gutted and pin-boned (note 1)
1 lemon cut into 8 wedges

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Instructions

Separate the whites out from 5 of the eggs (yolks not needed for this recipe) and add them to the bowl of a stand mixer fitted with the dough hook. Add the flour, salt and water and mix on low speed for 4-5 minutes until smooth. Turn dough out onto a lightly floured surface and form into a ball. Alternatively combine ingredients in a large bowl and mix with a wooden spoon until fully incorporated. Turn out onto a lightly floured work surface and knead for 10 minutes until smooth, then form into a ball.
Wrap dough in plastic wrap and set aside for 45 minutes at room temperature or in the refrigerator for up to 24 hours. Bring to room temperature before using.
Preheat oven to 425ºF/200ºC. Pat the fish dry with a cloth or paper towel and stuff the cavity with half of the lemon wedges, reserving the rest for garnish. (note 2)
Line a rimmed baking sheet with parchment paper. Unwrap the dough, cut in half and transfer one half to a lightly floured surface, rewrapping the other half. Roll out dough into a rectangle longer and wider than the fish by at least 3 inches and transfer to prepared baking sheet. (It's ok if some of the dough hangs over the ends of the baking sheet. Extra dough will be trimmed after the fish is encased and can later be used for decoration). Place the fish, centered, on top of the rolled-out dough. Roll out the other piece of dough to the same size and place it on top of the fish. Make sure both pieces of dough are solid, with no holes or tears. (note 3)
Mold the top and bottom pieces of dough around the fish and press them together between your fingers, where they meet, to create a tight seal. (note 4). Once you've got a tight seal, trim excess dough so you can see the shape of the fish beneath, being careful not to cut the seal. At this point the fish is ready to bake, or you can decorate it first.
If you choose to decorate the fish, combine extra dough trimmings into a ball and roll it out, on a lightly floured surface, to 1/4 inch thickness. Use a bottle cap or your olive oil cap as a cookie cutter to stamp out discs of dough that you can use to create scales and decorate the fish. Cut out and add on a tail, fins, gills, spines, lips, an eye or anything else that makes the presentation even more fish-like. (See photos in the post for examples). The cut-outs should easily stick to the dough casing but, if dry, add a dab of water to help them adhere.
Separate out the egg white from the remaining egg and whisk it in a small bowl. Brush the top and sides of the fish-in-pastry lightly with egg white and bake for 25 minutes. The fish should be almost fully cooked and will continue to cook gently inside its casing even after it comes out of the oven. (note 5) For a darker color on the pastry crust, turn the oven up to broil/grill and place the fish on a high shelf just under the broiler/grill element for 30 second to a minute, watching carefully, until desired color is reached.
Remove fish from oven and let it rest in its pastry for 10 minutes to reach serving temperature. Transfer it to a serving platter, decorate around it with lemon slices if you like. Set it on the table, dramatically cut open the pastry for all to see and serve immediately. (Note 6)

Notes

Choosing a fish: Red Snapper, Branzino and Sea Bass are all good options. The recipe will still work if the scales are left on. It is also fine to leave the pin bones in, just make sure everyone knows to eat around them.
Stuffing the cavity: Feel free to swap the lemons out for herbs, peeled garlic, sliced ginger or a combination. Or smash the bottom of a lemongrass stalk, cut it into large chunks and stuff in into the cavity with some cilantro sprigs and sliced shallots.
Rolling dough: If the dough tears or forms holes, recombine, knead and try again, or patch holes with small pieces of dough. The important thing is to make sure there are no gaps or holes so the fish can be fully and securely encased.
Creating a seal: If there is a lot of flour on the dough it may be hard to create a tight seal. Use a pastry brush or finger to apply a small amount of water to areas that are having a hard time sticking and this should fix the issue. You can also use a fork to crimp the two pieces of dough together, as you would for a pie crust.
Checking doneness: To check for doneness, insert a probe thermometer into the thickest part the fish. If the reading is between 117-120°F, the fish is ready to come out of the oven. It will continue to cook in its pastry casing as it rests and should reach a final serving temperature of 130-135ºF. Please note that the USDA recommends minimum temperature for fish of 145ºF. Many chefs suggest a lower minimum temperature for a flakier more tender fish. I am personally comfortable with a lower serving temperature but use your own judgement here - whatever you're comfortable with.
Carving and serving: Carefully cut around the top edge of the pastry and remove it, revealing the fish beneath. Discard the pastry. It's extremely salty and not meant to be consumed. Peel off any remaining fish skin and discard it. Remove the top fillets using a fish spatula or other spatula and transfer them to individual plates. Carefully lift the spine of the fish, starting from the tail, and discard it. Use a spatula to remove the underlying fillets and transfer them to plates.
Serve fish with lemon wedges and a drizzle of olive oil. (See post for more serving suggestions)

Prep Time: 30 minutes
Resting time: 45 minutes
Cook Time: 25 minutes
Category: Fish
Method: Bake
Cuisine: American