Baked Orange Roughy and Rice

An ordinary week in the life between milestones. The kitchen produces meals on schedule. Amma is in memory care. Appa visits her daily. The children grow. The sambar gets made. The rasam gets made. The wet grinder roars on Sundays. I made Kootu tonight. Not because it is special but because it is Tuesday and Tuesday needs dinner and the kitchen does not distinguish between milestone weeks and ordinary weeks. The generous pinch is generous either way. The food continues. We continue.

Kootu is what I made, but what I want to leave you with is this: a recipe for the kind of dinner that asks nothing of you except that you show up. Baked Orange Roughy and Rice is that dish for me on the nights when the story is still being written and the kitchen just needs to produce something warm. It is not glamorous. It does not need to be. It is Tuesday’s answer to the question of what we eat when we are simply continuing — and that, I have learned from Amma’s kitchen and my own, is a good enough reason to cook.

Prep Time: 10 minutes | Cook Time: 25 minutes | Total Time: 35 minutes | Servings: 4

Ingredients

4 orange roughy fillets (about 6 oz each)
1 cup long-grain white rice
2 cups low-sodium chicken or vegetable broth
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lemon, thinly sliced
3 cloves garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon paprika
1/2 teaspoon dried thyme
1/2 teaspoon salt, divided
1/4 teaspoon black pepper
2 tablespoons fresh parsley, chopped (for garnish)

Instructions

Preheat oven. Heat oven to 375°F (190°C). Lightly grease a 9x13-inch baking dish with a small amount of olive oil.
Cook the rice. Combine rice, broth, and 1/4 teaspoon salt in a medium saucepan. Bring to a boil over medium-high heat, then reduce heat to low, cover, and simmer for 18 minutes until liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and let rest, covered, for 5 minutes.
Season the fish. Pat orange roughy fillets dry with paper towels. In a small bowl, stir together the olive oil, garlic, paprika, thyme, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and black pepper. Brush the mixture evenly over both sides of each fillet.
Arrange and top. Place fillets in the prepared baking dish in a single layer. Lay 2–3 lemon slices over each fillet.
Bake. Bake uncovered for 15–18 minutes, until the fish flakes easily with a fork and is opaque throughout. Do not overbake; orange roughy is delicate and cooks quickly.
Serve. Fluff the rice with a fork. Plate a scoop of rice and top with a fillet. Spoon any pan juices over the fish and finish with fresh parsley.

Nutrition (per serving)

Baked Orange Roughy and Rice — What Gets Made on a Tuesday