Fish in Tehina Sauce Recipe
This fish in tehina sauce is a delicious and ridiculously easy
It is a very good illustration of everything I promise in the Pantry Chapter of my new cookbook, The Whole Foods Kosher Kitchen. Glorious Meals Pure and Simple:
A Good Pantry: That’s what it’s all about!
So, on days when you have no time to cook, all you need to do is bake a totally unadorned piece of fish or chicken or tofu, and top it with any of the condiments I have included in my Pantry chapter. I am picking one practically out of a hat here, tehina sauce, confident it will do the trick as well as any other condiments in this chapter. You will use only about 1 cup of tehina sauce for this recipe, the remaining tehina sauce will keep well in a glass jar in the refrigerator, a good few days: dunk your bread in it, pour it over poached chicken, or use it as salad dressing!
This recipe will work well with any thick firm-flesh fish: Salmon, tilapia, scrod, branzino, trout etc
Tehina Sauce is quite versatile:
Use it as a dip, on tofu, on chicken breasts. Drizzle it on grilled veggies. Use it as salad dressing, etc….
Ingredients
- 8 boneless skinless slices salmon or other thick firm flesh fish, about 6 ounces each
- Vegetable spray
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Spray the fish with vegetable spray on both sides. Place on a baking sheet, and bake about 15 minutes, or a drop longer, until the fish flakes easily. Serve warm or at room temperature, topped with about 1 cup of tehina sauce (recipe follows). Garnish with sliced scallions of chopped parsley.
Tehina Sauce:
You will love the Sephardi twist in this tehina sauce. Any excuse to use tehina (sesame paste)! It will perk up countless simple fish, poultry, and burger dishes. If you would rather end up with a thinner consistency, omit the tofu, and use the sauce as dressing: Tehina sauce is the best, full-bodied as incredibly healthy.
- 1 pound silken tofu
- ¾ cup tehina (sesame paste)
- 4 large cloves garlic
- 1 cup water
- ½ cup fresh lemon juice
- Salt and pepper to taste
- Bottled hot sauce to taste
- 1 tablespoon ground cumin
Instructions:
Blend the tofu, tehina, garlic, and water in a blender or food processor until smooth. Add all remaining ingredients and blend until smooth. Makes about 2 cups. Store refrigerated in a glass jar.
Can this sauce be frozen? with or without tofu?
I want to get a head start on Yom Tov …now
Marcie I don’t know. I think I wouldn’t! And I certainly wouldnt freeze the dish as is. OK to get a headstart on the holidays, but why not give priority to stuff we know will freeze perfectly: Cakes, cookies, soups, roasts? Then, make the condiments even a week before. I would say this will give you ample time, no? Then, all you will need to do on the day of is pour the sauce over the fish, and bake it! In general, here’s the rule of thumb for freezing: It pays to freeze all time-consuming items, like the ones I listed above). It absolutely doesn’t pay to freeze stuff that take very little time to make: It saves you next to nothing, and takes valuable freezer space quite unnecessarily.
This recipe looks fantastic! I just returned home from the market and I bought tilapia (It is Thursday here and the fish will be delivered tomorrow)
I have everything else in the pantry! Thanks so much. I will try to navigate my way back here after the weekend to let you know how it worked for me.
Meir & I are making this for shabbos,
and we cant wait to taste it!!
Chaviva Yay! You will love it! Have you seen the new hardcover book? It’s beautiful. Take a look! https://levanacooks.com/cookbooks/ Have a great Shabbos. Love to all xoxoxo
It is always a pleasure reading your amazing recipes.
That tilapea sounds like fun & I can’t wait to try it.
When is your next demo?
Love,
Paulette
Hi Paulette, I remember we spent a day together last summer when push came to shove about redoing the book: You must see the hardcover version: It’s beautiful: You will love it! Take a look https://levanacooks.com/cookbooks/ My next cooking demo is this Monday night, on Chocolate (complete dinner) Might you be able to swing it? I would be delighted to see you! Shabbat Shalom xoxoxo
This recipe sounds awsome. Looking forward to making it my first course Friday night. I will omit the tofu as we like lighter, thinner sauces. Thanks for the recipe.
Simone you will love it!
I have a question. For the Tilapia in Tehina Sauce recipe, should the tehina sauce mixture be cold/chilled when you serve it with the fish, or do you serve the sauce warm or at room temperature? Thanks
Hi Levana,
How did you know? I was planning to do Tilapia tonight since we are eating more fish, but my family will soon bore of my garlic and lemon, since I have done this with my salmon and trout this week already!
I needed a new fish recipe!
I hope you are well :)
All the best,
Mashi Benzaquen
Mashi so nice to hear from you! HAve you seen my latest cookbook: It’s awesome! Check it out: https://levanacooks.com/cookbooks/ Hope all is well xoxoxo