Recipes

Swordfish with Olives and Capers (Pesce Spada alla Ghiotta)

  • Serves

    serves 4

Swordfish with Olives and Capers
JOSEPH DE LEO

By SAVEUR Editors


Published on October 8, 2010

This dish, based on one from the book My Calabria, matches meaty swordfish steaks with a rustic, briny sauce of tomatoes, olives, and capers.

Find this recipe in our cookbook, SAVEUR: Italian Comfort Food

Ingredients

  • 4 swordfish steaks (about 6 oz. each and ⅜" thick), skin removed
  • Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste
  • ¼ cups extra-virgin olive oil
  • 2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
  • 2 cups whole peeled canned tomatoes, drained and minced
  • ½ large green olives, such as cerignola, pitted and roughly chopped
  • 3 tbsp. salt-packed capers, soaked and drained
  • ¼ tsp. crushed red chile flakes
  • 2 tbsp. roughly chopped flat-leaf parsley
  • 1 tbsp. fresh lemon juice

Instructions

Step 1

Season swordfish with salt and pepper. Heat oil in a 12" skillet over high heat. Working in two batches, add swordfish and cook, flipping once, until golden brown and medium rare, about 3 minutes. Transfer swordfish to a plate, leaving oil in skillet.

Step 2

Reduce heat to medium; add garlic and cook, stirring, until soft, about 3 minutes. Add tomatoes, olives, capers, and chile flakes and cook, stirring, until tomatoes soften and release some of their juices, about 5 minutes. Return swordfish steaks to skillet, nestling them in the sauce, and add parsley and lemon juice; cook until fish is cooked through. To serve, transfer swordfish to a platter and spoon sauce over top.

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