Serves 2–3 · Prep 20 min (plus 30 min marinating) · Cook 25 min
Guyana's most familiar way with a whole fish: scored, packed with green seasoning, and baked until the skin blisters and the flesh lifts clean off the bone.
Ingredients
For the fish
- 1 Whole Red Snapper (Large), 2 lb / 907 g, thawed
- 2 limes — 1 juiced, 1 cut into wedges
- 2 tbsp vegetable or coconut oil
- 1 tsp salt
- ½ tsp black pepper
For the green seasoning
- 6 sprigs eschallot (scallion), roughly chopped
- 8 leaves shado beni (culantro), or a large handful of cilantro
- 4 sprigs fresh thyme, leaves picked
- 6 cloves garlic
- 1 small onion, quartered
- 1 wiri wiri pepper, seeds removed for less heat
- 2 tbsp water
Method
- Thaw properly. Move the snapper to the fridge at 0–4 °C overnight. Don't use hot water or the microwave. Pat completely dry inside and out — dry skin is what crisps.
- Score and season. Cut three diagonal slashes through the skin on each side, down to the bone. Rub the fish all over with lime juice, then salt and pepper, working into the cuts and the cavity.
- Blend the green seasoning. Pulse all seasoning ingredients to a coarse, spoonable paste — texture, not purée.
- Marinate. Push the paste deep into the slashes and fill the cavity. Cover and rest in the fridge 30 minutes, up to 2 hours.
- Bake. Heat the oven to 200 °C / 400 °F. Set the fish on a lined tray, drizzle with oil, and bake 22–25 minutes. It's done when the thickest part flakes at the touch of a fork and the eye has gone opaque.
- Finish. Rest 5 minutes, then squeeze over lime. Serve with rice and peas, boiled provisions, or fried plantain.
Cook's note: Snapper this size holds together well on a grill too — 6–7 minutes a side over medium coals, skin oiled.
