Every year come December I get requests for the "Seven Fishes Dinner," from people who want menus and symbolisms. Alas, there isn't a single answer:
On the one hand, what's available varies, and therefore so do the dishes.
On the other, the wealth of the people preparing the meal also has an impact on what's served: The authors of Altamura Antichi Sapori note that in their town the well-to-do enjoy roast capitone (eel), while the less fortunate make do with baccalà.
And now to some ideas:
This traditional Roman Jewish fish and greens tart is quite tasty, in a zesty sort of way, and you may find yourself making it often, especially when company comes calling, because it is also easy to do.
Anchovies might strike you as an odd choice for starting out a Christmas Eve Dinner, but this is one of the standard Neapolitan Christmas Eve recipes, and you may find yourself making it fairly often thereafter, because it's both tasty and economical.
Monkfish is also known as the poor man's lobster, which gives an idea of how tasty it is. And here it is combined with saffron to make the perfect first course for a festive meal.
This lasagna with salmon and creamy robiola cheese will also be ideal for an elegant meal during Lent, and perhaps for Valentine's Day too.
Salt Cod might also strike you as an odd beginning for Christmas Eve, but again this pasta sauce is quite good, and is a perfect way to begin festivities. The recipe is Pugliese.
To say this is a fish sauce is like saying Michelangelo's Davide is a sculpture. The statement is true, but doesn't come close to conveying the awed delight you'll feel when tasting one or admiring the other.
If you're going to serve one fish in Naples on Christmas Eve, it had better be eel. The meal wouldn't be right without it. It wouldn't in some parts of Puglia either. They use a slightly
simpler recipe.
Along the Northeastern Adriatic Coast cooks prefer to fry their eel, and also fry other fish as well, to vary the flavors and enrich the platter.
Though I have seen a couple of clawed lobsters in Italian markets, the vast majority are of the spiny variety, which, according to some aficionados, tastes better than the clawed variety. No matter; if you have to make due with clawed lobsters the results will still be wonderful, and this Neapolitan dish will be a star of your dinner.
This is an extraordinarily rich, elegant Neapolitan fish salad, and will be a perfect interlude in a leisurely Christmas Eve Dinner.
