College Girl Gourmet - Grilled Swai Fish with Roasted Red Tomatoes, Capers and Red Quinoa

"I know ya tired of the usual..." - Trey Songz
 

As college kids/young grown ups on our own - we're constantly seeking ways to save money and survive. One thing I've learned from a long time ago - cooking your own meals leaves a few more dollars in your pocket than dining out. Another lesson I learned from my mom - is that you have to be able to make due with what you've got sometimes.

A key element in living on your own is always having the basics. There is always a bag of rice, cans of vegetables, and at least one type of frozen meat/seafood in the fridge. This way, if and when money gets low - there's still something to eat. No need to order Chinese or pizza - just fifteen minutes to whip up a meal. Hasn't failed me yet. And it sure comes in handy on rent week! 

My mom is the queen of "dinnovation" (dinner-innovation); which is making meals out of random ass ingredients and it results in actually good tasting meals. She was always good at making traditional Caribbean meals - but hated doing the extra work. Trust me, mom gets down on some oxtail or stew peas - but her specialty is meals with no name. Sometimes, I make the names up myself - but then I forget them cuz each one is different. 

Anywhoo - I started cutting back on the amount of meat I eat about a year ago, so seafood has been playing a major part in my life. Part of the reason my booty's shrunk, but that's neither here nor there. One day at Mom's house, I snuck some of their dinner and tasted the fish in the pot and it was delicious!

Had the thickness of tilapia, with the texture of catfish. The fish was called Swai, which is native to Asia and also known as the "striped catfish." I won't bore you with the rest. 

I started by heating extra virgin olive oil at medium heat, and throwing in the fish that I season like five minutes before on the pan. Once it's seared (browned on both sides), I throw in the capers (with a little bit of the water in the jar for flavor), and then the roasted red peppers after. 

I don't eat rice much, so I've learned to substitute it with quinoa, which comes in red and white varieties. It cooks like rice, and puffs out afterwards - so you need less, and are full after. 

In total, it takes about 15 minutes to prepare - and the portions of Swai are so big, you can probably take half to work or eat it the next day. 

I paired this meal with my homemade concoction of iced tea mixed with Aloe juice. I accidentally bought the sugar-free Aloe, and needed a way to mask the strange sugar-substitute flavor. 

It's a good meal that translates to about $3.00 per plate, which is perfect for a solo meal - or you can jazz it up with steamed vegetables for company. I'll photograph the next dinner and put you guys on as I go along.

This has been an episode of College Girl Gourmet. Enjoy!