Baking the Vermillion Rockfish.

Vermillion Rockfish, or "Red Snapper" is a great tasting meaty fish. It can be eaten many ways from raw to smoked. Today I will be preparing a simple dish with a whole (Gill and Gutted) 2 pound rockfish. Although the fish in the title is the fish being cooked, there myriad of local rockfish caught in the Southern California area can all be cooked in this easy method.

Here is a smaller sized (2 pound) Rockfish. I have turned the photo upside down to accentuate the fact that it he's been gutted and split down the middle from under the gills to the rear fins. this will facilitate the "butterfly" effect when cooking.

Cut slits in the side of the fish at an angle to allow faster cooking, and entry places for spices.

On a large sheet of aluminum foil, place your favorite veggies. Today we are using fresh Kale.

Open the bottom of the fish (butterfly) so that it stands on the veggies. Butterflying the fish will make it cook faster and more evenly. Pour a generous amount of olive oil over the fish. I recommend using a very high grade of a "nutty oil". this one is a Late Harvest Manzanillo, cold pressed in Santa Barbara.

Next give it a good coating of spices. here a simple garlic salt and black pepper is perfect. 

Wrap it loosely in the aluminum foil.

place it on a cookie sheet with raised sides in case of a leak!

Preheat the oven at 350 degrees.

Cook for 35 minutes.

At the end of 35 minutes check the fish by opening and putting a fork to the thickest part of the fillet. it should be soft and want to fall off the bone. If not cover and cook 15 more minutes or until the fish starts to fall apart. Then uncover for 10 minutes to brown.

Plate and serve!

This fish served with lemon wedges and quinoa and black beans. 

Home made Jalapeño sauce added a great punch of flavor!