Cheating with Bacon: Seared Grouper

Query: is it cheating to make a dish fantastic by adding a little bacon? Possibly, but who's keeping track?

Tonight I made seared grouper (a thick mild white flesh fish, similar to sea bass) with a bacon and hot house tomato sauce. I served that with steamed artichoke with roasted red pepper aioli.

I seasoned my grouper with salt and pepper and seared it in grape seed oil. Once I got a nice brown crust I popped it into a 400 degree oven for about 10 minutes to finish it off due to the thickness of the fish. I didn't have much on hand for my sauce, so I threw a few ingredients together just for fun. I fried up some thick cut bacon and shallot, and to that I added fresh thyme, white pepper, a few capers, and hothouse tomatoes. I also reduced some good aged balsamic vinegar for a little zing.

The spicy aioli for my steamed artichoke was made by blending roasted red peppers, mayonnaise, white pepper, red pepper flakes, salt, and a little garlic with my stick blender.

I served my new creation with 2007 Curtis Heritage Blanc, a Rhone style blend from Santa Ynez consisting mostly of Viognier, with a little Roussane and Marsanne. The Viognier made the wine especially aromatic but with a creamy viscosity, with notes of guava, lanolin, vanilla, and ripe peaches, and peaches, melon, and key lime on the palette. The wine stood up to the spiciness of my aioli but didn't overpower the lightness of the fish. It also had enough acidity to complement the bacon sauce.

Big N especially liked my fish, which he described as a "rib eye", because it was big and meaty but also tender and flavorful. Satisfying. I was pleased with this one. Two words: Ba Con.