Delicious, easy, and fresh Pescado a la Veracruzana, or Veracruz Style Fish, features an aromatic sauce of tomatoes, garlic, olives, and capers. Make it with whole fish or fillets for a fast and enticing meal hailing from Mexico's coastal region.
(This recipe was originally published in September 2019, but was updated with new photos and content in 2022).
Pescado a la Veracruzana (Veracruz style Fish), or more specifically Huachinango a la Veracruzana (Veracruz style red snapper), is the signature dish of Veracruz, a seaside state and city on the Gulf of Mexico.
It boasts the coastal flavors of Veracruz with heavy Spanish and Mediterranean influences. To me, the flavors are even a bit reminiscent of an Italian puttanesca, featuring a bit of spice, some brininess, salt and acidity.
This crowd-pleasing fish dish is classically made with a whole fish smothered in a tomato based sauce infused with olives, capers, pickled jalapeños, onions, garlic, and spices. Although preparing the dish with a whole fish has a visual appeal, it cooks faster, and is easier to serve and eat if you opt for fillets.
Ingredient notes
- Red Snapper: This classic Veracruz style fish is made with a whole red snapper, however you can use boneless skin-on red snapper fillets as I do. Red snapper is a lean, firm-textured fish with a mild flavor. If you can't find it, try this recipe with another flaky white fish. I remove the skin after cooking and before eating my red snapper. Because the fish cooks in the sauce, you won't have a crispy skin like you may with other preparations so it's not as appealing for me to eat it.
- Tomatoes: I use chopped fresh plum tomatoes for this Pescado a la Veracruzana.
- Olives: You'll need some pitted green olives for this recipe. Manzanilla olives are usually stuffed with pimentos (think of those small cocktail olives). Although you could use those (pimentos and all) I opt for olives without stuffing. It may be harder to find un-stuffed Manzanillas in your grocery store, so other varieties of green olives are fine too.
- Pickled Jalapeños: I have a mild obsession with pickled jalapeños and consistently have jars of homemade pickled jalapeños in my fridge. I highly recommend making these yourself! They are SO EASY and way better than store-bought, but really, any pickled jalapeños will do.
How to make it
Heat olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook just until the onions are translucent, about 3 minutes.
Next, add the wine and bay leaves and cook until the wine is almost completely evaporated.
Add the tomatoes, olives, jalapeños, capers, oregano, and thyme and reduce the heat to low (PHOTO 1). Cook until the tomatoes are completely soft, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and stir in the parsley (PHOTO 2).
If using a whole fish, score each side with three or four deep slashes (this will help the sauce penetrate the fish and keep it from curling up). If using fillets, remove the pinbones using fish tweezers or needle-nose pliers, and season the flesh-side with salt and pepper.
In a pan large enough to hold the whole fish (or the fillets in a single layer), heat the remaining olive oil over medium-high heat.
For fish fillets: Cook skin down first for 2 to 3 minutes, until the edges start to brown (PHOTO 3), then flip and pour the tomato mixture on top (PHOTO 4).
Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for about 6 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through. The exact cooking time will depend on the thickness of the fish fillets.
For a whole fish: Add the whole snapper and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until turning golden brown. Carefully flip the fish and pour the tomato mixture on top. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the fish is cooked through. The thickest part of the fish should flake easily when prodded with a fork.
To serve, divide the fish evenly among four plates and top with the sauce. Serve Pescado a la Veracruzana with white rice.
Please scroll to the bottom of the post for the full recipe (in a printable recipe card) including ingredient amounts and detailed instructions.
Expert tips and FAQs
If using red snapper fillets rather than a whole fish, the size of the fillets can vary significantly based on the size of the fish they came from. If the fillets are quite large, you can cut them into portions to make it easier to cook and serve.
You can prep all the ingredients for the sauce in advance, cover and refrigerate until ready to cook. Alternatively, you can even cook the sauce in advance. Adding a cold sauce to the par-cooked fish can slow down the overall cooking process, especially if it's ice cold (straight from the fridge). Give it a few minutes to come to room temperature, or gently reheat it before adding it for better results.
To test if your fish is cooked, pierce it with a fork at an angle into the thickest part of the fish. Give it a little twist and if the fish flakes easily, it's ready. You can also use an instant read thermometer to check its internal temperature. Fish is safe to eat at 145°F.
The short answer is yes, as long as it's been properly scaled. I loved eating crispy skin on seared red snapper! However, with this particular preparation of the fish, the skin gets quite soft in the sauce. In this case, I prefer to peel the skin off before eating the fish.
Other recipes you may like
- Grilled Fish Tacos
- Grilled Salmon with Quinoa Salad and Arugula Chimichurri
- Garlic Lemon Salmon Piccata
- Bouillabaisse (Provençal Fish Stew)
- Spaghetti with Cod, Rapini, and Garlic
- Gambas al Ajillo (Garlic Shrimp)
Tried this recipe? Please leave a star ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ rating in the recipe card below and/or a review in the comments section further down the page. You can also follow me on social media on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest!
Pescado a la Veracruzana (Veracruz Style Fish)
Ingredients
- 1 ½ tablespoons olive oil
- ½ yellow onion, minced
- 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons white wine
- 3 bay leaves
- 4 plum tomatoes, chopped
- 10 to 14 pitted Manzanilla or other green olives, roughly chopped
- ¼ cup sliced pickled jalapeño peppers, chopped
- 2 tablespoons capers
- 1 teaspoon fresh oregano leaves or ½ teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 sprig fresh thyme or pinch dried thyme
- Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
- 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley
- 1 (3 to 4 pound) large whole red snapper or 1 ½ pounds boneless skin-on red snapper fillets, or other flaky white fish
Instructions
- Heat ½ tablespoon of the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-low heat. Add the onions and garlic and cook just until the onions are translucent, about 3 minutes.
- Next, add the wine and bay leaves and cook until the wine is almost completely evaporated. Add the tomatoes, olives, jalapeños, capers, oregano, and thyme and reduce the heat to low. Cook until the tomatoes are completely soft, stirring often, about 10 minutes. Add salt and pepper to taste, and stir in the parsley.
- If using a whole fish, score each side with three or four deep slashes (this will help the sauce penetrate the fish and keep it from curling up). If using fillets, remove the pinbones using fish tweezers or needle-nose pliers, and season the flesh-side with salt and pepper.
- In a pan large enough to hold the whole fish (or the fillets in a single layer), heat the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil over medium-high heat.
- For a whole fish: Add the whole snapper and cook for 2 to 3 minutes, until turning golden brown. Carefully flip the fish and pour the tomato mixture on top. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cover. Cook for about 10 minutes, until the fish is cooked through (the thickest part of the fish should flake easily when prodded with a fork).
- For fish fillets: Cook skin down first for 2 to 3 minutes, until the edges start to brown, then flip and pour the tomato mixture on top. Reduce the heat to medium-low, cover, and cook for about 6 minutes, or until the fish is cooked through. The exact cooking time will depend on the thickness of the fish fillets.
- To serve, divide the fish evenly among four plates and top with the sauce. Serve with white rice.
Notes
- I highly recommend making homemade pickled jalapeños not only for this recipe, but in general. It's easy and far better quality than store-bought.
- This classic Veracruz style fish is made with a whole red snapper, however you can use boneless skin-on red snapper fillets as I do. Red snapper is a lean, firm-textured fish with a mild flavor. If you can't find it, try this recipe with another flaky white fish.
- If using red snapper fillets rather than a whole fish, the size of the fillets can vary significantly based on the size of the fish they came from. If the fillets are quite large, you can cut them into portions to make it easier to cook and serve.
- I remove the skin after cooking and before eating my red snapper. Because the fish cooks in the sauce, you won't have a crispy skin like you may with other preparations so it's not as appealing for me to eat it.
- You'll need some pitted green olives for this recipe. Manzanilla olives are usually stuffed with pimentos. Although you could use those (pimentos and all) I've opted for olives that aren't stuffed. It may be harder to find un-stuffed Manzanillas in your grocery store, so other varieties of green olives are fine too.
- Adapted from Made in Mexico
Nutrition
*All nutritional information is based on third-party calculations and should be considered estimates. Actual nutritional content will vary with brands used, measuring methods, portion sizes and more.*
Mary says
One of the best fish recipes I've ever had. So flavorful and easy to make!
Camille says
I don't make fish very often at home, and I can say with total honesty that I don't think I've ever had red snapper. I really want to try this!!
Victoria says
Itโs so good! You could try a different type of fish if you want, but put that sauce on anything and Iโd eat it! Yum.