Spiced Snapper with Carrot Purée and Gingered Beets

Name: Spiced Snapper with Carrot Purée and Gingered Beets
Ingredients: 6 snapper fillets, 5 to 6 ounces each, skin on; 3/4 cup harissa (see page 225); 3 bunches baby beets; 1/2 cup extra-virgin olive oil; 2 teaspoons finely diced shallot; 1 teaspoon finely diced jalapeño; 1/2 teaspoon minced garlic; 2 teaspoon grated fresh ginger; 1/4 cup minced mint; 1/4 cup minced cilantro; 2 teaspoons lime juice; Carrot purée (recipe follows); 1 bunch watercress, cleaned, tough stems removed; 1/2 lemon, for juicing; Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper; 2 pounds carrots, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch rounds; A handful of cilantro stems, plus 1/4 cup leaves; 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil; 1 cup diced white onion; Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

January 24, 2012

This exotic spiced snapper dish evolved from the most mundane ingredient in the mix: the everyday carrot. But the carrots that inspired it, grown by local farmer Jerry Rutiz, are by no means ordinary. His funky-shaped, dirt-encrusted carrots are the sweetest and most delicious of any I’ve tasted. One week at Lucques, we found ourselves with an abundance of Jerry’s carrots. I ended up making a big batch of carrot soup for the staff, just to get the carrots out of the walk-in refrigerator. The result was so delicious that I had to find more ways to show off these remarkable roots. Caramelized and puréed with onion and cilantro, they are the perfect foil for this harissa-spiced snapper topped with gingered beets and lime salsa.

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