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The Republic of Nauru is one of the smallest and most remote nations in the world. Being an island nation in the Pacific Ocean, its resident’s cuisine features a lot of fish, seafood, and coconuts; however, very few fresh fruits and vegetables are grown locally due to its weather and soil and therefore imported in. This has not hindered the restaurant community, as a variety of different cuisines can be found as most food items are imported. Not surprisingly then Nauru’s National Dish is Coconut fish: fillets of fish marinated in lime juice, coated in ground coconut and fried.
Ingredients
2 pounds/900 grams white fish fillets such as cod or tilapia
¼ cup lime juice
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 teaspoon black pepper
2 eggs
1 cup all-purpose white flour
1 small coconut grated or 2 cups coconut flakes
Flake sea salt
Lime wedges, for serving
Directions
Add the limes juice, salt, and pepper to a shallow bowl and mix well; add the fish fillets to the marinade and allow to sit for 5 to 10 minutes.
In the meanwhile, prepare a shallow bowl with flour and another one with grated coconut or coconut flakes; set aside.
To a third shallow bowl, whisk the eggs; set aside.
Preheat a frying pan over medium heat with enough canola or vegetable oil.
Remove a fillet from the marinade and dip it into the flour, making sure it is coated on all sides.
Dip the fillet into the eggs, then into the coconut flakes, making sure to press lightly so the coconut adheres to the fish.
Fry over medium heat until both sides are golden brown.
Remove from the pan to a paper towel to absorb any excess fat.
Sprinkle flake sea salt on top and serve warm next to lime wedges.
Recipe courtesy of www.slofoodgroup.com