- 1½ pounds boneless, skinless bluefish filets
- 1 pound fresh fennel
- 5 tablespoons butter
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 2 medium-size garlic cloves, minced
- 1-inch strip of orange peel
- ½ teaspoon dry fennel seeds
- ¼ cup Pernod
- 1 cup peeled and drained canned tomatoes
- Salt
- Freshly ground pepper
- Preheat oven to 375 degrees.
- With 1 tablespoon of butter, lightly grease a baking dish large enough to accommodate all the fish filets in one layer. Season the filets lightly with salt and pepper and place them in the buttered baking dish.
- Discard the feathery green tops of the fennel and cut the bulb into 1-inch pieces.
- Melt 2 tablespoons of the butter with the olive oil in a 9-inch skillet. When hot, add the fresh fennel, garlic, orange peel, dried fennel, Pernod, ¾ teaspoon salt and ¼ teaspoon pepper. Cover and simmer, over medium heat, for 10 minutes.
- Then add the tomatoes to the skillet and simmer, covered, for 10 minutes more. Remove the cover. If a lot of liquid remains in the skillet, evaporate it over high heat until the mixture looks syrupy. Remove the orange peel. Turn the heat off and stir in 2 tablespoons of butter. Adjust the seasoning. Spoon the mixture over fish. Cover with foil and bake for 15 to 20 minutes depending on the thickness of the fish. Do not overbake, or it will be dry.