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"  Published in the March 2013 issue How to Make Bryan Caswell&amp;#039;s Whole FishReef, Houston Serves two. Tip: Most whole-fish recipes call for dry roasting \u2014 stuffing with herbs and baking. But it usually turns out exactly that: dry. Caswell poaches fish in its liquidy natural habitat. This is a shallow-poaching technique \u2014 something we do in the restaurant by the hundreds every week. The fish stays moist and contributes a significant amount of flavor to the liquid (called cuisson). Then, with a little butter and even less work, you&amp;#039;ve got a truly showy sauce. And it all happens in one pan. You Have: 1 1/2-to-2 1/2-lb fish (like sea bream, snapper, or striped bass), gutted, cleaned, scaled, and fins clipped off with scissors (with the exception of the tail) You Need: A heavy ovenproof pan in which the fish fits comfortably but snugly: a large skillet, an oval-shaped Dutch oven (like Le Creuset&amp;#039;s), or a heavy-gauge roasting pan with a flat bottom. You want the entire surface of the fish to come in contact with the pan. Procedure: Lay out the fish so that the head is to the right and the belly closest to you. With a sharp knife, make two slits (about 1 inch below the gill plate), angling the blade away from the head at about 25 degrees and cutting straight to the bone (but not through it). Flip fish over (head to the left and belly closest to you) and repeat process. This will help reduce cooking time in the thickest part of the fish. Rub the entire fish liberally with olive oil. (You don&amp;#039;t want the delicate skin to stick to the pan.) Liberally season the exterior as well as the interior belly and gill pouches with kosher salt and cayenne pepper. Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Get your pan ripping hot and liberally coat the cooking surface with a shallow puddle of olive oil. (Again, so the delicate skin doesn&amp;#039;t stick. Fish looks better with its skin intact.) When the oil is rippling across the surface, gently place the fish in the pan and sear the first side until crisp. (Much depends on the heat and the pan, so timing can vary. Gently lift the fish to check.) Gently flip the fish and let the second side sear for about half the time it took for the first side. This takes practice. Add some peeled and sliced shallots and garlic cloves, a few thyme sprigs, and a handful of chopped scallions, using only the white ends and reserving the green parts for later. Let the aromatics sweat around the fish for a few minutes to release liquids. Deglaze with a glug of white wine, giving it a few seconds to fizzle down. Add equal parts water and clam juice, using just enough to come about one third the way up the fish. Arrange a few lemons slices over the fish. Bring the liquid to a boil and transfer the pan to the hot oven. When the blade of a knife can pierce through the fish without resistance, it&amp;#039;s done. (I like to use a thin metal cake tester because it doesn&amp;#039;t flake the fish.) The average cooking time is 12 to 15 minutes, but again, this will vary depending upon the pan and the heat. Remove the fish to a platter and return the pan (it&amp;#039;s hot, so be careful) to a low burner. Add the chopped scallion greens, and bring the liquid to a simmer. Whisk in 1 tbsp cold unsalted butter to finish the sauce and give it a sheen. Serve from one side of the fish. Pick up the bone at the tail end and lift it toward the head as though you were pulling off a Band-Aid, pressing down with the side of the knife blade to release the connective tissue below the gill plate if necessary. The entire bone frame will lift right off, looking like one of those fish skeletons in the Tweety Bird cartoons. Now serve the bottom half, spooning sauce over each portion. How to Carve a Whole Fish      Step 1    Working from the belly side, use a thin-bladed knife to gently separate the top half of the fish. When properly cooked, it will slip right off the bone. Step 2    Carefully transfer to serving plate, using your hand like a spatula if necessary and gently turning the fillet so that it is skin-side down. Step 3    Peel off the fish frame like a Band-Aid, detaching it at the base if necessary. Step 4    Serve bottom half, carefully transferring it skin-side down. "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.esquire.com/food-drink/food/a20002/cook-whole-fish-0313/>