There are many different traditions and customs related to Christmas. However different, most of these are centered around one thing – family cooking. A particularly special family tradition is The Feast of the Seven Fishes. Originally introduced by the Italian-Americans, the feast has grown to be a celebrated Christmas tradition for people of all walks of life. Today, we’re sharing our list of seven easy fish recipes for Christmas for your very own Feast of the Seven Fishes.
These are dishes you and your loved ones are bound to enjoy. We’ll give you a serving count for each dish, so feel free to adjust the ingredients to your needs. Let’s dive in.
1. Fish Chowder
A great starter, this fish chowder gives you some much needed warmth, along with a delightful creamy texture.
Ingredients (4 servings):
- 4 cups of chicken stock (or water)
- 4 cups of whole milk
- 1 tablespoon of butter
- 1.5 pounds of flounder or halibut fillet
- 4 slices of uncooked bacon (medium size)
- 2 large carrots, diced
- 2 large potatoes, diced
- 2 cloves of garlic, sliced/crushed
- 1 large onion, sliced
- 1.5 teaspoons of dried thyme
- salt and pepper to taste
- 4 bay leaves
How to make it:
Step 1 – pour the water into a deep pot, along with the 4 bay leaves. As the water begins to boil, add the fish fillets to simmer for 10 minutes until flaky. Test how cooked the fish is with a fork. Remove the fish from the pot and cut into medium size pieces. Keep 1/2 of your cooking liquid.
Step 2 – Place the bacon and garlic into a Dutch oven and cook over medium heat until crispy. Remove the bacon and cut into small cubes, but leave any liquid in along with the garlic. Add the onion, potatoes, carrots and leave to simmer for about 10 minutes over medium heat. Add the saved cooking liquid with the bay leaves to the pot, along with the thyme and seasoning. Reduce the heat and leave to simmer for another 10 minutes. Add the butter and milk and stir. Leave to simmer for 25 minutes. When the potatoes become tender, remove the bay leaves and add your fish and cubes of bacon. Season if needed.
2. Salmon Wellington
A classic Christmas dish, Salmon Wellington is one specialty that your friends and family won’t be able to get enough of. And it’s a lot simpler to make than you would think.
Ingredients (4-6 servings):
- 6 lb of salmon fillets
- 10 oz of spinach
- 1 sheet of puff pastry
- 4 tablespoons of butter
- 8 oz of cream cheese
- 1/2 cup of parmesan cheese
- 1/2 medium size onion,sliced
- 2 cloves of garlic, sliced/crushed
- 1/2 cup of breadcrumbs
- 2 beaten eggs
- 4 tablespoons of dill
- salt and pepper to taste
How to make it:
Step 1: Preheat your oven to 425°F. Add butter into a pan and melt over medium heat. Add the garlic and onions to cook until soft and clear. Add the spinach and season. Cook until the spinach wilts. Mix the breadcrumbs, cream cheese, parmesan and dill and add to the pan. Stir until the ingredients blend evenly together. Remove from the heat.
Step 2: Roll out your puff pastry and place the salmon in the middle. Season. Add your spinach mixture on top of the salmon. Fold the pastry around the salmon and spinach and remove any excess pastry. Make sure to fold the larger sides of the pastry first and finish folding with the smaller sides. Flip the salmon over so that the folded parts end up on the bottom. Place the wrapped salmon onto a baking paper and brush it with the beaten egg. Cut shallow diagonal lines into the pastry to allow it to breathe. Brush with egg wash again. Place in the oven to bake for 20-25 minutes until golden.
3. Hearty Fish Pie
There’s something distinctively homey about fish pie. Creamy and delicious, this dish is a Christmas must.
Ingredients (4-6 servings):
- 7 oz of haddock fillet, deboned and cut into small chunks
- 7 oz of salmon fillet, deboned and cut into small chunks
- 7 oz of cod or withing fillet, deboned and cut into small chunks
- 7 oz of baby spinach
- 3 pounds of potatoes, cubed
- 1.5 cups of fish stock
- 1 tablespoon of olive oil
- 1.5 cups of whole milk
- 1.7 oz of butter
- 1.7 oz of plain flour
- 1.7 oz of cheddar, grated
- 4 eggs
- 2 bay leaves
- the juice of 1/2 lemon
- 1 tablespoon of mustard
How to make it:
Step 1: Preheat oven to 400ºF. Peel the potatoes and cut into small cubes. Place the potatoes in a pot to boil until tender (you can add your eggs to the pot to be boiled and save time).
Step 2: To make the sauce, add the butter to a deep pan and stir over a low heat. Add the bay leaves and gradually stir in the fish stock and milk until the mixture is smooth. Bring to the boil, then reduce heat and leave to simmer for about 10 minutes. Add the mustard, lemon juice, and half the cheddar. Stir, season, and remove from heat.
Step 3: Cook the spinach for a few minutes until wilted. Remove the bay leaves and pour the sauce over the spinach.
Step 4: Place the fish pieces evenly into a baking dish. Quarter the eggs and add into the baking dish with the spinach mixture.
Step 5: Mash the cooked potatoes. adding the milk and a little olive oil. Blend together and add to the baking dish, covering the pie mixture.
Step 6: Cover the pie with the remaining cheddar and place in oven to cook for 45 minutes or until the sides turn golden.
4. Baked Sea Bass
This dish has a true Italian flavor to it. Not only is it delicious – it’s by far the simplest of on our list of easy fish recipes for Christmas.
Ingredients (3-4 servings):
- 12 oz of whole, scaled, headless sea bass
- 5 large tomatoes, diced
- 5 small eggplants (or zucchini), diced
- 5 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1 tablespoon of oregano
- 1 tablespoon of dried basil
- 3 stalks of fresh rosemary
- salt and pepper to taste
How to make it:
Step 1: Preheat the oven to 400ºF. Place aluminum foil on your baking dish so that it slightly hangs over the sides. Add olive oil, oregano, basil and seasoning to a mixing bowl with the tomatoes and the eggplant and mix together.
Step 2: Place the sea bass in the middle of the baking dish. Add the vegetable mix into the dish. Fold the aluminum foil inward so that the fish bakes in the vegetable juices.
Step 3: Bake for 40 minutes or until the fish becomes flaky. Top with some rosemary to finish it off.
5. Mussels With Tomatoes and Garlic
Dead simple to make, but incredibly satisfying. Mussels are the perfect dish to serve to larger groups of people.
Ingredients (6 servings):
- 2 pounds of scrubbed mussels
- 12 oz of tomatoes, diced
- 2 tablespoons of butter
- 3 cloves of garlic, minced
- 1 large onion, chopped
- 1/2 cup dry white wine
- 1 tablespoon of dried basil
- 1 tablespoon of parsley
- grilled breadsticks to serve
- salt and pepper to taste
How to make it:
Step 1: Melt the butter in a pot over a medium heat. Add the onion and cook for about 5 minutes. Add the garlic and cook for a minute more, until clear.
Step 2: Add the tomatoes, wine, basil and parsley. Season and stir until well mixed together.
Step 3: Add the mussels and leave to simmer over a low heat until all the shells are open. Serve with breadsticks.
6. Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo
Creamy and rich with flavor, this Shrimp Fettuccine Alfredo is the ultimate comfort food.
Ingredients (4 servings):
- 1 pound of fettuccine
- 1 pound of raw shrimps, peeled and deveined
- 3 tablespoons of butter
- 1 cup of heavy cream
- 1/2 cup of whole milk
- 1 cup of parmesan
- 1 egg yolk
- 2 cloves of minced garlic
- 1 tablespoon of parsley
- salt and pepper to taste
How to make it:
Step 1: Cook the fettuccine in a pot of salted water (go al dente so that the pasta has some bite to it). Save a third of the pasta water to use for the sauce, if needed.
Step 2: Melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a pan over a medium heat. Add the shrimps and reduce heat. Season and cook until the shrimps become pink and opaque. Remove the shrimps from the heat and set aside. Reserve any liquid in the pan.
Step 3: Add the remaining butter to the pan. Add the garlic and cook until clear. Whisk in the flower and cook for 2 minutes or until no longer raw. Add the cream and milk and stir. Add the egg yolk and stir. If needed, add the remaining pasta water and stir again. Reduce the heat, add 2/3 of the parmesan, and leave to simmer for five minutes.
Step 4: When the sauce has thickened, add the fettuccine and the shrimps, mixing them around. Season and garnish with the remaining parmesan and parsley.
7. Salmon With Spinach and Tartar Sauce
Light but endlessly enjoyable, this salmon dish is one of our all time favorites.
Ingredients (2 servings):
- 12 oz of salmon fillets
- 1 tablespoons of olive oil
- 1/2 cup of butter
- 1 cup of spinach
- 1 lemon
- 1/2 cup of mayonnaise
- 1/2 cup of dill pickle
- 1 clove of garlic, minced
- 1 teaspoon of dill
- 1 teaspoon of parsley
- 1 teaspoon of drained capers
- salt and pepper to taste
How to make it:
Step 1: For the Tartar sauce, squeeze 1/2 of the lemon in a bowl. Add the mayo, dill pickle, dill, pepper and capers. Mix it all up.
Step 2: Melt the butter in a pan over a medium heat. Season the salmon and fry over for around 4 minutes or until golden and flaky. Remove from the heat.
Step 3: Add the garlic to the pan and cook over until clear. Add the spinach and season. Cook for 2 minutes until wilted. Remove from heat and drizzle with olive oil.
Step 4: Place the salmon on top of the spinach and pour the sauce over it. Cut the remaining lemon into slices and serve.
Congratulations, your feast is done! It’s tough to say whether preparing these dishes or eating them was more enjoyable. Ok, that’s a lie. But honestly, we couldn’t pick which of our fish recipes is our favorite if our lives depended on it.
