Wild Carp with Potatoes Baked Under a Mayonnaise Glaze
Here the mayonnaise isn't spread on — it's mixed with water, and that difference isn't cosmetic. Two spoonfuls stirred into a cup make a liquid that runs between every potato slice and coats each one; the same amount spread on top would stay on the fish and burn.
The spices are mixed into a thick paste with lemon juice, not sprinkled on dry. A dry mix falls off the carcass before it even gets to the oven, while the paste clings to both the skin and the belly cavity — exactly where it's needed most.
The foil comes off a quarter of an hour before the end. For an hour under it the fish cooks in steam and stays pale; those last fifteen minutes of open heat evaporate the excess moisture from the tray and give the potatoes a crust.
Drop the potatoes from under the foil and you get just the fish — juicy wild carp in foil with tomatoes. Swap the mayonnaise for onion and repeat the trick on a different fish, as in baked bream with potatoes under an onion coat.
Caloric content: 140kcal
Prepare the fish
Rub it and surround it with potatoes
Make the glaze
Bake under foil
Remove the foil
Serve
Notes
- The mayonnaise is mixed with water. Two spoonfuls per cup. Spread on top, it won't reach the potatoes and will burn on the fish.
- The spices are mixed with lemon juice. A thick paste clings to the carcass; a dry mix falls off before it even gets to the oven.
- The last fifteen minutes go without foil. Skip this step and the dish still tastes right but comes out completely pale.
- Go easy on the khmeli-suneli. The blend is sharp and easily overpowers everything else on fish. Half a teaspoon per two-kilogram carcass is the ceiling.
- Time is calculated from weight. An hour is for a fish of about two kilograms. A larger one needs longer, and check it near the backbone.
Questions and Answers
How long do you bake wild carp with potatoes?
An hour under foil at 200 °C and another 10–15 minutes without it.
Why mix the mayonnaise with water?
So it spreads evenly over all the potatoes. Spread on the fish, it simply won't reach them.
Can mayonnaise be replaced with sour cream?
Yes, in the same ratio with water. The glaze will be milder and a little lighter.
Why is the fish pale?
The foil wasn't removed at the end. Under it the dish cooks in steam and doesn't take on color.
Recipe and step-by-step photos — kolizhanka.net.ua.