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Sea Bream in "acqua pazza"

17/11/2023

Sea Bream in “acqua pazza” is a simple and tasty dish from the Italian culinary tradition, especially popular in the Campania region. “Acqua pazza” refers to the flavorful cooking liquid made of water, tomatoes, and herbs in which the sea bream is cooked.

Ingredients

  • 2 sea breams of about 300-400 g each (cleaned and scaled)
  • 500 g of cherry or piccadilly tomatoes, ripe and juicy
  • 2 cloves of garlic
  • Fresh parsley to taste
  • 1 hot chili pepper (optional)
  • 100 ml of dry white wine
  • 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil
  • Salt to taste
  • Pepper to taste
  • Water as needed

Preparation

  1. Wash the tomatoes and cut them in half or into four if they are a bit larger. Peel the garlic cloves and finely slice them, chop the parsley and, if you like a touch of spice, prepare the chili pepper as well.

  2. In a pan large enough to contain the two sea breams, sauté the garlic in the extra virgin olive oil until it turns golden. If you’ve chosen to use the chili pepper, add it now.

  3. Add the tomatoes to the sauté and let them cook for a few minutes. Pour in the white wine and let the alcohol evaporate.

  4. Add water until the tomatoes are covered, bring to a boil, salt and pepper to taste. Let everything cook for about 10 minutes to flavor the water.

  5. Place the sea breams in the pan, covering them with the cooking liquid and cook for about 15 minutes, turning them gently halfway through cooking. If necessary, add more water during cooking to prevent the sauce from drying out too much.

  6. A few minutes before the end of cooking, add the chopped parsley.

  7. Make sure that the sea bream is well cooked before removing it from the heat; its flesh should be easily separated from the bone.

Serve the Sea Bream in “acqua pazza” hot, with its little sauce, and if you like, accompany with toasted bread slices or a portion of boiled potatoes.

Curiosity

The term “acqua pazza” probably derives from fishermen who would cook fresh catch offshore in a simple manner, using seawater (which was said to be “crazy” due to its high salt content) and a few other ingredients available on board such as tomatoes and garlic.

Sea Bream in "acqua pazza"