Jamaican Baked Fish Casserole with Fresh Herbs

About This Recipe

This baked fish casserole leans on the same aromatic base found throughout Jamaican cooking, thyme, scallion, garlic and Scotch bonnet, layered with tomatoes and white fish and baked until everything melds into a fragrant, saucy dish. Unlike escovitch or brown stew fish, which are cooked mostly on the stovetop, this version bakes the fish directly in its sauce, keeping the flesh moist and letting the herbs infuse throughout. Fresh thyme sprigs nestled among the fish rather than just stirred into the sauce release their oils slowly as the casserole bakes, giving a more subtle, rounded herbal flavor than chopped thyme stirred in at the start. A whole Scotch bonnet placed on top, unbroken, perfumes the whole dish with background heat that builds gently rather than announcing itself in a single spicy bite. Served straight from the baking dish with rice or hard-dough bread to soak up the tomato-herb sauce, this is a straightforward, harbor-town style Jamaican family dinner.

Ingredients

Serves 4

• 700 gwhite fish fillets(such as snapper or tilapia)
• 2tomatoes(sliced)
• 1onion(sliced)
• 1bell pepper(sliced)
• 4 clovesgarlic(minced)
• 3scallions(sliced)
• 5 sprigsfresh thyme
• 1Scotch bonnet pepper(left whole)
• 2 tbsplime juice
• 3 tbspolive oil
• 1.5 tspfine sea salt

Instructions

1. 1

   Marinate the fish

   Rub fish fillets with lime juice, salt and half the garlic. Let sit 15 minutes.

2. 2

   Prepare the baking dish

   Preheat oven to 190C (375F). Arrange half the sliced onion, tomato and bell pepper in a baking dish.

3. 3

   Layer the fish

   Place fish fillets on top of the vegetables. Scatter remaining garlic, scallions and thyme sprigs over the fish, then top with remaining tomato, onion and pepper slices.

4. 4

   Add the Scotch bonnet and oil

   Nestle the whole Scotch bonnet on top. Drizzle everything with olive oil.

5. 5

   Bake and serve

   Cover with foil and bake 20-25 minutes until the fish flakes easily. Remove the Scotch bonnet and thyme stems, and serve hot with the pan juices spooned over.

Variations

• •

  Add sliced okra to the vegetable layers for a more traditional Caribbean touch.

• •

  Swap white fish for salmon for a richer, oilier version.

• •

  Serve with coconut rice instead of plain rice for extra richness.

Storage

Refrigerate up to 2 days in an airtight container. Reheat gently in a covered dish in a 175C (350F) oven until warmed through; the fish can dry out if microwaved.

Frequently Asked Questions