Five Best Fish Recipes

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7/31/13 2:he five best fish recipes from Observer Food Monthly | Life and style | The Observer

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Fuchsia Dunlop's seabream in fish fragrant sauce. Photograph: Martin Poole

Sea bream in fish fragrant sauce: Fuchsia Dunlop

This is my attempt to recreate, on a domestic scale, a recipe from the Bashu Weiyuan

tucked away on a back street in the centre of Chengdu. There, where they title the dish

The five best fish recipes from Observer

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Fuchsia Dunlop, Jason Atherton,Angela Hartnett, Pierre Koffmann and Nathan Outlaw

The Observer, Sunday 5 May 2013
http://www.theguardian.com/ukhttp://www.observer.co.uk/http://observer.guardian.co.uk/http://www.theguardian.com/profile/angela-hartnetthttp://www.theguardian.com/profile/fuchsia-dunlophttp://www.guardian.co.uk/observer-food-monthly-awardshttp://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/fishhttp://www.observer.co.uk/http://www.theguardian.com/uk


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"Lucky home town fish", they serve a whole sea bass covered in lavish quantities of fish-

fragrant sauce, that famous Sichuanese combination of pickled chilli, garlic and ginger

with sweet-and-sour flavours. Here, I've suggested using a smaller fish and more

modest amounts of sauce.

Serves 2

stock750ml

sea bream 1.35 kg, scaled and cleaned, but with head and tail intact

For the sauce

cooking oil 2 tbsp

Sichuan chilli bean paste 2 tbsp (or Sichuan pickled chilli paste if you can get it)

garlic 1 tbsp, finely chopped

ginger1 tbsp, finely chopped

stock200mlcaster sugar 1 tbsp

potato flour 2 tsp mixed with 1! tbsp cold water

Chinkiang vinegar 1 tbsp

spring onion greens 3 tbsp, finely sliced

Heat up the 750ml stock in a wok. Make parallel cuts 1cm apart along each side of the

fish, perpendicular to the spine and all the way down to the backbone (this will help the

fish to poach quickly and keep it tender). Lay it in the boiling stock, bring the liquid to a

boil, then reduce the heat to poach the fish gently. Move the fish around a little if

necessary to ensure even cooking. After about 2 minutes, turn the fish and poach for

another 2 minutes, by which time it should be just tender to the bone: poke a chopstick

into the thickest part of the flesh to make sure (it should come away easily from the

backbone).

Remove the fish to a serving dish and pour off the stock for other uses. Re-season the

surface of the wok, then return to a medium flame with the cooking oil. Add the chilli

bean paste and stir-fry for a minute or so until the oil is red and fragrant. Tip in thegarlic and ginger and stir until you can smell their fragrances. Then pour in the 200ml

stock and bring to a boil. Mix in the sugar, then give the potato flour mixture a stir and

add just enough to thicken the sauce to a thick, luxurious gravy (you will probably need

all of it). Then stir in the vinegar, followed by the spring onion greens. Mix well and

ladle over the waiting fish. Serve.


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From Every Grain of Rice by Fuchsia Dunlop (Bloomsbury, 25). To order for 18

with free UK p&p go to guardian.co.uk/bookshop

Halibut with chestnuts: Jason Atherton

Jason Atherton's

halibut with chestnuts. Photograph: Martin Poole

Serves 2

halibut fillets 2

garlic cloves 3, crushed

bay leaf2 sprigs

thyme 3 sprigs

butter 60g

chestnuts 8, chopped

lemon segments 2 tbsp, chopped

small capers 2 tbsp, chopped

shallots 2 tbsp, chopped

spring greens 8, blanched and refreshed

parsley2 tbsp, chopped

fish brown sauce (see below) 100ml

For the fish brown sauce

chopped halibut bones, including heads but without the eyes 2kg, washed and

dried

shallots 3, roughly chopped
http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9781408802526


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garlic 1 head

red wine 125ml

brown chicken stock2 litres

thyme 10 sprigs

bay leaves 2

soft butter 30g

To make the sauce, heat oven to 180C/gas mark 4 and roast the halibut bones in a

roasting tin with shallots and garlic for 30 minutes. Pour into a large heavy-based pan,

cover with stock and fresh herbs, simmer for 10-15 minutes, pass through a sieve and

reduce by half. Thicken with butter at the end.

To cook the halibut, put a little oil in a non-stick pan then add the fish and crushed

garlic and bay leaves and thyme. When coloured on one side, turn over and add 30g

butter. When it starts to foam and the fish is cooked, take out the fillets and let themrest. Then add the rest of the butter, and when it starts to foam add the chestnuts, then

the lemon, capers and shallots. Cook for a few minutes then add the spring greens and

parsley and season with sea salt.

Put the fish on a plate and pour over the fish sauce and add the garnish.

Socialeatinghouse.com

Spaghetti alle vongole: Angela Hartnett

Angela Hartnett's
http://socialeatinghouse.com/


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spaghetti alle vongole. Photograph: Jonathan Lovekin

A hint of chilli is sometimes found in southern Italian dishes such as this, but it should

not overpower.

Serves 4

dried spaghetti 300-350g

olive oil 2 tbsp, plus extra for drizzling

fresh red chilli! tsp de-seeded and finely sliced

garlic cloves 2, finely sliced

small clams 500g, scrubbed

white wine a splash

flat-leaf parsley2 tbsp, finely chopped

salt and freshly ground black pepper

Bring a large pan of salted water to the boil and cook the spaghetti for about 7-8minutes, or according to packet instructions, until al dente.

Meanwhile, heat the olive oil in a large, deep frying pan over a medium heat. Add the

chilli and garlic and cook for 3-4 minutes, or until soft but not coloured. Add the clams

to the pan along with the wine. Cover and cook over a fairly high heat for 2-3 minutes,

or until the clams open. Remove from the heat, then pick out and discard any clams that

have not opened.

Drain the spaghetti and add to the clams. Stir in the parsley and drizzle over a touch ofolive oil if it looks dry. Season to taste and serve immediately.

From Cucina by Angela Hartnett (Ebury, 25). To order a copy for 18 with free UK

p&p go to guardian.co.uk/bookshop

Turbot with mustard: Pierre Koffmann
http://www.guardianbookshop.co.uk/BerteShopWeb/viewProduct.do?ISBN=9780091910273


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Pierre Koffmann's

turbot with mustard. Photograph: Martin Poole

Serves 4

turbot 4 fillets of 150g

butter 120g, softened

shallots 30g, very finely chopped

white wine 100ml

fish stock250ml

wholegrain mustard 1 tbsp

tomato 1 large, blanched, skinned, deseeded and diced

parsley1 tsp, finely choppedsea salt and freshly ground black pepper

fresh tagliatelle to serve

Preheat the oven to 140C/gas 1. Lightly butter an ovenproof pan or gratin dish and

sprinkle on the shallots. Place the turbot fillets on top and pour the white wine and fish

stock on to the fillets. Cover with buttered foil. Bring to the boil on the hob, then

transfer to the preheated oven and cook for 8-10 minutes. Arrange the fillets on a warm

serving dish, cover and keep warm.

Reduce the cooking stock by three-fifths and whisk in the remaining butter little by

little. Mix in the mustard and check the seasoning. Sprinkle over the diced tomato and

chopped parsley and pour over the turbot. Serve with fresh tagliatelle.

Coley burger with shallot and cider mustard


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relish: Nathan Outlaw

Nathan Outlaw's coley

burger with shallot and cider mustard relish. Photograph: Romas Foord

Makes 10 burgers

For the coley patties

banana shallots 4, finely chopped

cloves of garlic 8, finely chopped

Dutch red chillis 6, deseeded and finely chopped

olive oil

coley fillet 1.5kg, no bones and skin, diced

chives 5 tbsp, chopped

eggs 3, to bind

breadcrumbs 250g

sea salt and pepper

For the relish

banana shallots 6, roughly chopped

olive oil

cider vinegar 200ml

dry cider 1 litre

thyme 3 tsp, chopped

caster sugar 200g

apples 4, peeled and chopped

wholegrain mustard 5 tbsp


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bread rolls 10

beef tomatoes 3, sliced

rocket leaves 200g, washed

pickled shallots (see recipe below) 100g

To make the relish, sweat off the chopped shallot in a little olive oil for 2 minutes in a

large pan over a medium heat. Add the vinegar, cider, thyme and sugar and reduce over

a medium heat until the liquid becomes syrupy. When the mixture is syrupy, add the

apple and cook until the apple is soft and then add the mustard. Season with salt and

pepper and reserve until required in a jar with a good fitting lid.

To make the coley patties, sweat off the shallot, garlic and chilli in a frying pan with a

drizzle of olive oil for 2 minutes. Remove the mixture from the pan and allow it to cool

down.

Using a food processor, in two batches, blend the coley for 1 minute. Place all the fish

into a mixing bowl and add the shallot and chilli mixture, the chives, eggs and

breadcrumbs and give it a good mix with your hands until it is well incorporated. Season

with salt and pepper.

At this stage it is good to fry off a little piece of the patty mix to taste the seasoning as a

tester, then you can adjust the seasoning as you like it. When you are happy with the

flavour, divide the mixture into 100g balls and then mould them into patty-style shapes.

Lay the patties on to a tray and refrigerate until required.

To cook the patties, preheat the oven to 200C/gas mark 6. Heat a frying pan over a

medium heat and add some olive oil. When the oil is hot, add the patties and fry for 2

minutes on each side. Place the patties on to an oven tray and put in the oven for 3

minutes.

While they are cooking, slice your bread rolls and add a drizzle of olive oil followed by a

slice or two of tomato, some rocket and a few pickled shallots (to pickle shallots, boil

together 50g sugar, 50ml red wine vinegar, 50ml red wine, then pour over 2 sliced

shallots; leave for 2 hours).

Remove the patties from the oven and place them on top of the rocket and shallots. Top

the patties with some relish and serve with more dressed rocket leaves and tomatoes.

From Nathan Outlaw's British Seafood, (Quadrille, 25). To order a copy for 17 with
http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/seafood


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