Kurucha Urapiti Capeado en Huevo

Ingredients

Equipment Needed

• •Comal de leña or cast iron comal for roasting jitomates
• •Blender or volcanic stone molcajete
• •Wide lead-free clay cazuela or heavy saucepan
• •Wide heavy skillet for frying
• •Wire rack set over a tray
• •Thin fish spatula

Instructions

1. 1

   Season the fish

   Lay the pescado blanco fillets on a tray. Sprinkle with the lime juice and 1/2 teaspoon of the salt. Let them sit for 15 minutes, then pat them completely dry. Kurucha from the lago is delicate. If the surface stays wet, the flour turns gummy and the egg capeado slides off. Dry fish, clean batter, no excuses.

   If you are using a thicker substitute fish, cut it into pieces no more than 3/4 inch thick so it cooks before the egg coat darkens.
2. 2

   Roast the caldillo base

   Heat a comal over medium heat. Roast the jitomates, onion, unpeeled garlic, and chile serrano, turning as needed, until the tomatoes are soft with dark freckles, the onion smells sweet, and the garlic skins are browned. This is the milpa side of the dish: jitomate and chile giving body to what the lago gives in fish. Peel the garlic.

3. 3

   Blend the caldillo

   Blend the roasted jitomates, onion, peeled garlic, serrano, 1 cup of the fish stock, and 1/2 teaspoon of salt until smooth. This is a caldillo, not atápakua. Atápakua is thickened and heavier. This sauce should move easily around the fish and soak into the egg without burying it.

4. 4

   Fry the sauce

   Heat 2 tablespoons aceite de maíz in a wide clay cazuela or heavy saucepan over medium. Pour in the blended sauce. It will sputter at first. Cook for 8 to 10 minutes, stirring, until the raw pink color turns deeper red and the oil begins to shine at the edges. Add the remaining 1/2 cup stock and the epazote. Simmer gently for 10 minutes. Taste for salt. The caldillo should taste like tomato, lake fish stock, serrano, and epazote, not like chile trying to prove something.

5. 5

   Beat the capeado

   Beat the egg whites in a clean bowl until they hold soft peaks. The bowl must be clean. One smear of yolk or grease and the whites will sulk. Beat the yolks with a pinch of salt, then fold them into the whites with a light hand. No baking powder. No beer. No me vengas con atajos. The lift comes from the eggs.

6. 6

   Heat the frying oil

   Pour 1 inch of aceite de maíz into a wide skillet and heat over medium-high to 350F. If you do not use a thermometer, drop in a small spoonful of egg batter. It should sizzle immediately, float, and turn golden slowly, not brown in ten seconds. For this fish, use clean oil. Save the manteca for carnitas and beans.

7. 7

   Coat and fry

   Spread the flour on a plate. Dredge each fillet lightly, shaking off every excess bit, then dip it into the egg capeado so it is fully covered. Lay it into the hot oil away from you. Fry 1 1/2 to 2 minutes per side, until the egg coat is puffed and golden and the fish flakes at the thickest point. Work in batches. Crowding the skillet drops the heat and gives you greasy batter. Así se hace y punto.

   Pescado blanco cooks quickly. Pull it when the center just turns opaque. If you wait for the egg to go dark brown, the fish will be dry.
8. 8

   Bathe in caldillo

   Transfer the fried fish to a rack for one minute, then set the pieces into the simmering caldillo. Spoon sauce over the top and let them sit 3 to 4 minutes, just long enough for the egg coat to drink in the jitomate. Do not boil. The capeado should stay tender and puffed, not collapse into the sauce.

9. 9

   Serve from clay

   Serve the kurucha urapiti in the cazuela or on a Capula or Tzintzuntzan barro plate, with warm corn tortillas from the comal and arroz blanco if you want the full Janitzio lunch. Put the caldillo on the table too. A home cook from Lake Pátzcuaro will spoon more over the rice. Cada estado, su propia cocina.

Chef Tips

• •Ask your fish vendor directly if the pescado blanco is legally sourced. Lake Pátzcuaro's white fish, Chirostoma estor, has been pressured by pollution, overfishing, and introduced species. If you cannot get it legally, use fresh trout, tilapia, or another firm white lake fish. That is a compromise, not an upgrade.
• •The caldillo should not be hot for the sake of being hot. One serrano gives backbone. This dish is about the sweet freshwater fish and the egg capeado. Not all Mexican food is chile shouting at you.
• •Do not add canned tomato sauce. Roast the jitomates on the comal. The dark freckles from the comal are what keep the caldillo from tasting raw and flat.
• •If you cook in clay, use lead-free clay only. A black-clay cazuela from Patamban or green-glazed Michoacán barro is beautiful on the table, but safety comes first. Ask before you buy. Pregúntale a las señoras del mercado.
• •The egg batter waits for nobody. Make the caldillo first, set the table, warm the tortillas, then beat the eggs and fry the fish. Recetas probadas y garantizadas.

Advance Preparation

• •The caldillo can be made one day ahead and refrigerated. Reheat it gently and add the epazote during the final 10 minutes so the herb stays clear and green-tasting.
• •The fish can be pin-boned and patted dry up to 4 hours ahead. Keep it covered in the refrigerator. Add lime and salt only 15 minutes before cooking.
• •Do not beat the egg capeado ahead. The foam collapses as it sits, and collapsed egg gives you a heavy coat instead of a puffed one.

Frequently Asked Questions

Nutrition Information

1 serving (about 580g)