
I grew up before the advent of self-serve olive bars. To this California kid, olives were spongy, black (possibly dyed), and used primarily to fit over tiny fingertips for dinnertime entertainment. I didn’t develop a taste for them until I moved here and started shopping at the original olive bars, the bastot (stalls) selling a dozen varieties out of bins: wrinkly, oil-cured Moroccans; purple- blushed kalamatas (imported from Greece); the cracked, flat-green local suri variety. Now it’s hard to imagine a meal without a little bowl of olives for snacking. I like to chop up whatever I have around, spread it on fish, and wrap it in chard before simmering it in a lemony, cilantro-y sauce.
Recipe information
Total Time
45 minutes
Yield
4 servings
Ingredients
Preparation
Step 1
Finely zest and juice both lemons. Reserve the juice and half the zest. In a small bowl, combine the remaining zest with the olives, 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, 2 tablespoons of the chopped cilantro leaves, 1 teaspoon garlic, and the red pepper flakes until incorporated.
Step 2
Bring a small pot of water to a boil over medium-high heat. Use a knife to separate the leaves from the chard stems so you have 2 leaves from each stem. Thinly slice the stems crosswise. Dip the chard leaves in the boiling water for 10 seconds to soften; drain, cool slightly, and pat dry. Cut the fish into 8 equal-sized pieces, season with salt and pepper, and spread 2 teaspoons of the olive mixture on each piece of fish.
Step 3
Place 1 piece of fish on a piece of chard and roll it up; use the extra 2 leaves to patch any parts that need extra wrapping. Heat the remaining 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until tender and lightly golden, 8 to 9 minutes. Add the chard stems with the remaining 3 teaspoons garlic and cook, stirring, until softened, 3 to 4 minutes. Add the flour and cook, stirring, until absorbed, 1 minute. Add the reserved lemon zest and juice with the stock, salt, and pepper and cook, stirring, until the liquid thickens and bubbles, 2 to 3 minutes. Stir in most of the remaining cilantro.
Step 4
Nestle the fish in the skillet, scatter the tomatoes and whole olives over the fish, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook until the fish is opaque and the chard can be cut easily, 10 minutes. Serve over the grain of your choice with sauce spooned over the top; garnish with cilantro.