Okay, so I’ve been wanting to try cooking a whole fish for ages. It always seemed so intimidating, you know? But I finally decided to give it a shot. I looked up “whole flounder recipes” and found a bunch of ideas, but I wanted something simple. I’m no chef, that’s for sure!
First, I went to the fish market. That was an experience in itself! So many choices. I finally found a nice-looking flounder – not too big, not too small. The guy at the counter was super helpful and even cleaned it for me, which saved me a lot of trouble.
Getting Started
- Preheat the oven – I set mine to 400 degrees Fahrenheit.
- Grab a baking sheet – I lined mine with some parchment paper to make cleanup easier (because who likes scrubbing pans?).
- The Fish- I made sure the flounder I get has been cleaned, with scales and guts removed!
Next, I prepped the fish.I rinsed the flounder under cold water and patted it dry with paper towels. Gotta get rid of any extra moisture, you know?
Then, the fun part – seasoning! I decided to keep it simple:
- Olive oil – Just drizzled some all over the fish, both sides.
- Salt and pepper – A generous sprinkle of each, again, on both sides.
- Lemon slices – I stuffed a few inside the fish and laid some on top. Love that lemony flavor!
- Fresh herbs – I had some parsley, so I chopped that up and sprinkled it on.
I placed the flounder on the prepared baking sheet and popped it in the oven.
The Waiting Game
Honestly, the hardest part was waiting! The recipe I found said to bake it for about 15-20 minutes, but I wanted to be sure. I used a fork to check if the flesh was flaky – that’s how you know it’s done. It took closer to 25 minutes for mine, probably because it was a bit thicker.
Success!
When it was finally ready, I carefully took it out of the oven. It smelled amazing! The skin was a little crispy, and the lemon and herbs looked so good.
I let it cool down for just a few minutes (so I didn’t burn my tongue!), and then I dug in. It was seriously delicious! So flaky and moist, and the lemon and parsley gave it such a fresh flavor.
I’m so glad I finally tried this. It was way easier than I thought, and it felt like a real accomplishment. Next time, I might try adding some garlic or maybe even a little white wine. Definitely making this again!
