Food

Tony Tantillo: Grapes

(CBS) Well today's tip of the week is going to be an update on seedless grapes coming in from Chile.

We did a tip on this previously, but now the quality of these Thompson seedless grapes coming in are incredible. I haven't seen them this good this time of year in many years and right now is the peak of the season for Chilean Thompson seedless grapes; look how beautiful they are.

This is what you want to look for when you buy them; see the beautiful color? That's what you want to look for. The more amber color they are, the better they're going to be. The stems have to be nice and green; the greener the stem, the fresher the grape.

Now if you hold a bunch up like this and the grapes start to fall down, forget it! Don't buy it, it's been stored around for too long.

When you bring them home, put them in the refrigerator, don't leave them on the counter. I know they're pretty, but put them in the refrigerator. They come from Chile, thousands of miles away, and if you break that cold chain, at room temperature you're going to have some raisins and that you don't want.

Loaded with carbohydrates, grapes are great for us. They're Nature's natural energy snack, and right now from Chile the prices are great, which is good, and the quality is impeccable.

Sautéed Sea Bass with Grapes and Pistachios
This is a variation on sole Veronique. You can substitute any relatively mild fish.
Serves 2

1 tablespoon clarified butter or whole butter
2 tablespoons flour
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
Two 5-ounce fillets of sea bass
2 tablespoons shelled pistachios
1/3 to 1/2 dry vermouth or dry white wine
1/2 cup seedless green and red grapes halved

1. Put butter in a skillet over medium-high heat.

2. Combine flour, salt, and pepper. Dredge fillets in flour mixture, shake off excess, and add to the skillet. Cook fish 3 minutes on one side. Turn gently with a wide spatula and cook about 2 minutes on the other side or until fillets spring back when pressed with a finger.

3. Remove fillets to a warm platter, skin side down. Add pistachios to skillet and cook 1 minute, shaking the pan. Add wine and grapes. Scrape up any bits on the bottom of the pan with a wooden spoon. Reduce just until sauce thickens, a few minutes. Pour sauce over fish fillets.

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