Recipe ideas
Roasted Drum with Summer Vegetable Ratatouille and Rice Grits Created by Executive Chef Levon Wallace, Gray & Dudley, Nashville, TN
Recipe from Executive Chef Levon Wallace, Gray & Dudley, Nashville, TN
Ingredients
Rice grits:
- 2 cups water
- 1 cup milk
- 1 cup rice grits (if you cannot find rice grits, buzz your rice in a food processor for 1 minute; fragrant varieties such as jasmine or basmati work best)
- 1 bay leaf
- 4 Tbsp. softened butter
- Bring liquids to a simmer and whisk in rice grits and bay leaf. Continue to whisk for 2 minutes; reduce heat to a low simmer until grits are tender. Stir in butter and season to taste with salt and pepper.
Tomato/herb purée:
- 4 garlic cloves
- 2 anchovy filets
- 1 Tbsp. fresh chopped oregano
- 2 Tbsp. fresh chopped parsley
- 1 cup tomato purée
Ratatouille:
- ¼ cup olive oil
- 1 lb. assorted summer squash (zephyr, patty pan, gold bar) sliced ½-inch thick
- 1 lb. Japanese eggplant, sliced ½-inch thick
- Tomato herb purée (from above)
- ¼ cup basil leaves, torn
- 1 pint cherry tomatoes
Direction
Pre-heat broiler on high. Place a large, oven-safe skillet on medium-high heat and heat olive oil until almost smoking.
Add squash and eggplant and sauté until lightly browned.
Add tomato purée and stir to coat. Cover mixture with cherry tomatoes and place in broiler for 3–4 minutes or until tomatoes are lightly charred. Adjust seasoning with salt and pepper and add basil leaves just before serving.
Roasted Drum: 4 6-oz. fish filets (in this case Drum, but whatever is freshest and most sustainable for your area is most important) 4 Tbsp. softened unsalted butter Salt and pepper
Place fish filets in an oven-safe dish, like a cookie sheet. Brush with butter and season well with salt and pepper.
Broil on high for 5–8 minutes or until medium.
How to serve
Allow to rest 5 minutes before serving.
To serve, spoon grits onto plate, top with broiled fish and top with ratatouille and a drizzle of olive oil. Serves 4.