Gefilte Fish

Total Time Prep: 1 hour Cook: 40 min. + chilling
Yield 13 servings
Test Kitchen Approved
This is not your bubbe's gefilte fish! Our step-by-step homemade gefilte fish recipe will make you forget that store-bought jar ever existed.

Ingredients

  • 1 tablespoon olive oil
  • 2 whole medium carrots
  • 1 fennel bulb, quartered
  • 1 medium onion, quartered
  • 1 tablespoon whole peppercorns
  • 2 quarts water
  • 1 bottle (250 milliliters) white wine
  • 1 tablespoon salt
  • 1 bay leaf
  • FISH:
  • 1 medium carrot, quartered
  • 1 small onion, quartered
  • 1 garlic clove
  • 12 ounces whitefish, rockfish or cod fillet, bones and skin removed, cubed
  • 12 ounces salmon or trout fillets, bones and skin removed, cubed
  • 1/4 cup matzo meal
  • 1 large egg, lightly beaten
  • 2 tablespoons snipped fresh dill
  • 4-1/2 teaspoons sugar
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • 2 teaspoons salt
  • 1/4 teaspoon pepper

Directions

  1. In a large saucepan or Dutch oven, heat oil over medium heat. Add carrots, fennel, onion and peppercorns. Cook and stir for 5 minutes. Stir in water, wine, salt and bay leaf. Bring to a boil. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, 45 minutes.
  2. Meanwhile, place carrot, onion and garlic in a food processor; pulse until finely ground. Add fish; pulse until finely ground (mixture should not become paste-like). Transfer to a large bowl. Stir in matzo meal, egg, dill, sugar, lemon juice, salt and pepper until just combined. With wet hands, gently pat into the shape of a 2-in. egg. Gently add to simmering broth mixture. Cover and simmer on low for 30 minutes.
  3. Gently remove gefilte fish and carrot from broth with a slotted spoon into a shallow dish with a rim. Strain broth mixture. Pour 1 cup strained broth mixture into dish. Save remaining strained broth and vegetables for another use. Cover and refrigerate gefilte fish and carrots until chilled, 3 hours or overnight.
  4. To serve, use a slotted spoon to arrange gefilte fish on a serving platter. Slice carrots and add to platter. If desired, garnish with additional dill.

Nutrition Facts

1 gefilte fish: 147 calories, 3g fat (1g saturated fat), 37mg cholesterol, 415mg sodium, 7g carbohydrate (3g sugars, 1g fiber), 10g protein. Diabetic Exchanges: 1 lean meat, 1/2 starch.

Gefilte fish is usually served at Passover seder before the main meal. It goes great with spicy horseradish. Don't forget to moisten your hands with water while shaping to keep the fish mixture from sticking to your hands. —Risa Lichtman, Portland, Oregon
Recipe Creator

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