Posts Tagged ‘Fish’

Using a salt crust will make your fish incredibly flavoursome and succulent. Just a dash of good quality olive oil and lemon juice will finish the dish perfectly.

a generous amount of coarse sea salt
200ml water
1 whole red snapper
1 lemon
bunch of fresh thyme or wild fennel
extra-virgin olive oil for drizzling

Preheat the oven to 180C.

In a bowl stir together the salt and water until combined.

On a large baking sheet spread half of salt mixture in a rectangle just larger than the red snapper and set fish on top.

Halve the lemon crosswise and cut 3 slices from 1 half, reserving the remaining half. Insert the slices into the cavity of the fish and fill with the herbs. Pat the rest of the salt mixture over fish to cover completely and bake in middle of of the oven for 30 minutes.

Tap all around the edge of the salt crust with the back of a large spoon to loosen, then lift the top off. Squeeze the juice from your reserved lemon half over the fish, drizzle with olive oil and carefully lift off the bottom crust. Serve with buttery seasonal vegetables and new potatoes.

Serves 2

2 lemon sole fillets
100g plain flour
2 eggs
100g breadcrumbs
2 large handfuls of fresh mixed herbs
1 tbsp white wine vinegar
1 tbsp olive oil
Salt and pepper
1 tbsp lemon juice

Put the flour onto a flat plate, season with salt and pepper.

Beat the eggs, pour them onto a different plate.

On a third plate, lay out the breadcrumbs.

Dip each sole fillet first in the flour, then the egg, then the breadcrumbs to coat.

To make the pesto, finely chop all the herbs and mix with vinegar, oil, salt, pepper and lemon juice.

Fry until each side is nicely golden brown. Remove from the heat and place on some kitchen towel to absorb any excess oil.

Transfer the fillets to a plate and spoon the pesto over the top.

Try serving this with some fresh new potatoes and a crisp green salad.

2 whole red mullet
1 bunch of  thyme
2 oranges
salt and freshly ground black pepper
50g butter
3tbsp white wine

Peel the oranges and slice into segments, reserving any juice. Use one bunch of thyme to stuff the fish, along with some of the orange segments. Surround the fish with the remaining slices of orange and pour over any reserved juice, along with the white wine.

Season the fish with sea salt and ground pepper and dot with butter. Bake at 200C, gas mark 6 for 20-25 minutes until the fish is flaky.

Serve with the orange slices and juice from the dish.

Outstanding British chef Andre Garrett has this week kindly provided us with his signature recipe – fresh John Dory with orange glazed endive, cauliflower puree, curry oil, pine nuts and golden raisins. Andre is head chef at Michelin-Starred Galvin at Windows and is renowned for his innovative, ingredient-led cuisine.

“My aim as a chef is to buy the best produce and deliver it expertly cooked to my customers, Natoora are one of my most valuable and trusted suppliers and they get it every time, we share the same values, searching out the best produce for our customers.” (Andre Garrett)

Serves 4

2 6-800g John Dory, filleted

For the cauliflower puree:
1 large white cauliflower
30g butter
200ml milk
200ml single cream or crème fraiche

For the orange glazed endive:
2 large endive or chicory
2 lemons
2 oranges
50g icing sugar
water if needed

For the curry oil, pine nuts and golden raisins
50g Cochin curry powder
200ml corn oil
20g soaked golden raisins
20g toasted pine nuts
10g salted capers
Juice of half lemon

Forward planning: Soak the golden raisins in hot water over night, toast the pine nuts and keep.

Cauliflower puree:
Cut the cauliflower into small florets and discard the stalks, heat the butter in a large pan until foamy, add the cauliflower, season with a little salt and sweat gently over a low heat for 2 mins, turn up the heat to high and add the milk, cover with a lid and cook very quickly until cauliflower is tender, about 5-6 mins, drain in colander then transfer cooked cauliflower to blender, discard any left over milk, cover blender and blend on medium speed to start puree, bring single cream to boil and drizzle into cauliflower while still blending, you should have a thick smooth puree, pass through fine strainer and check for seasoning, this can be done advance and will keep in fridge for 1-2 days.

Orange glazed endive:
Zest both lemons and oranges and juice and keep aside, trim any dirty leaves from both endive and wash, dry on paper, heat large frying pan on medium heat, cut both endive in two length ways and dip cut side in sugar, add a splash of olive oil to the pan and add the endive sugar side down and allow to caramelize, when color turn over and color on both sides, add juice and zest and a little more sugar and allow to simmer and reduce for 10-12 mins to cook through and glaze, the endive should end by being soft and glazed with the sticky caramel, set aside.

Curry oil, pine nuts and golden raisins
Heat the curry powder in a dry pan over a medium heat to toast and cook the curry, keep moving and smelling as you cook and the flavor and aroma will develop in a warm, sweet curry fragrance, at this stage pour in the oil and mix, bring the oil to around 60 degrees and take off heat, leave to settle and cool, when cooled, pass though a cheese cloth and leave behind any sediment.

To serve:

Marinade the John Dory fillets for 20 mins before serving, when ready to serve, reheat the puree in a pan, reheat the endive in the pan, warm the raisins, capers and pine nuts in some of the oil.

Heat a large frying pan over a high heat and place in the John dory skin side down, using the curry oil as the cooking medium, do not move while the skin is crisping and fry for 3 mins, turn and cook for a further 2-3 mins until the fish is firm and opaque, take out and drain.

Swipe some puree onto the warmed serving plates, top with the endive and arrange the fish across, dress with the warmed dressing and serve.

Chef’s tip: When blending the puree, use a blender with a tight fitting lid and start on low speed then move up to high.

Making your own stock is not only very satisfying, its also a great way to use up some veg (and perhaps some less appetising animal parts)…

There are 2 basic types – white and brown.

White stock: Made by placing the ingredients straight into the cooking liquid
Brown stock: The ingredients are first browned in oil or fat

Perhaps the most thrifty stock is fish stock as it allows you to use most of the fish trimmings:

Recipe: White fish stock

250g fish trimmings (bones, head and skin – try to avoid the gills as these can be bitter)
1 large fennel bulb
1 leek
1 celery
handful of herbs (parsley or chervil stalks or a mix works well)
175ml dry white wine
1ltr water

First rinse the fish trimmings of any blood. Chop the vegetables roughly and place in a heavy-bottomed stock pot. Roughly chop the herbs and add (including the stems) to the pot. Add the cleaned fish trimmings and pour over the wine. Add enough water to cover all the ingredients and place on a high heat to bring to a simmer.

Simmer for 5 minutes, then remove the surface scum with a spoon and discard. Reduce the heat, cover, and leave to simmer for a further 25 minutes. Make sure to skim ever 5-10 minutes.

Once cooked, strain the stock and discard the fish trimmings and vegetables.

Leave to cool. Your stock will keep for up to 3 days in the fridge or a couple of months if frozen. To sace freezer space, reduce the stock further and freeze in ice cube trays.

This makes an excellent base for fish soups and sauces.

Eggs-pect only the best this Easter…

The glut of bank holidays coming up has certainly put a spring in our steps, and better still, in just a few days we will all be merrily cracking open some chocolatey delights…before inevitably feeling just a bit full.

All those extra days off will give us a chance to spend some quality time with our first love – food…

Spring Lamb: The spring lamb season begins next week, meaning super-succulent, tender lamb, as always sourced from the British Isles and prepared lovingly by our expert butchers at Moen and Sons. Enjoy perfect melt-in-the-mouth meat this Easter Sunday with our recipe for Gigot de Sept Heures – a traditional French slow-cooked lamb. Or order a lamb fricassee recipe kit for everything you need to create an Easter feast.

Fish For Friday: Have a fish feast this Good Friday! Try our refreshing recipe below or explore the rest of our blog for more fish recipes.

Chocolate Indulgence: Easter is of course the chocolate holiday, whether as a present or just a cheeky treat for yourself, our selection from Rococo is sure to please. Shop now

Ordering in time for Easter?
London postcodes (see our delivery FAQs)
Last chance to order: Wednesday 20th April by 11pm
Last delivery date: Thursday 21st April

Recipe: Red Mullet with Wild Fennel and Orange

A refreshing fish supper for Good Friday

Serves 2
2 whole red mullet
2 bunches wild fennel
2 oranges
salt and freshly ground pepper
50g butter
3 tbsp white wine

Peel the oranges and slice into segments, reserving any juice. Use one bunch of fennel to stuff the fish with some of the orange segments. Surround the fish with the remaining slices of orange and pour over any reserved juice, along with the white wine.

Season the fish with sea salt and ground pepper and dot with butter.

Bake at 200C, gas mark 6 for 20-25 minutes until the fish is flaky.

Bruise the other bunch of fennel, chop the leaves and scatter over the mullet.

Serve with the orange slices and juice from the dish.

This will be delicious served with some waxy new pototoes doused in herby butter, or alternatively, slice some potatoes very thinly and arrange on a baking tray. Season and toss in oil then bake for 10 minutes. Put the fish on top and cook for the remaining 20-25 minutes.

Monk’s beard (also known as barba dei frati and agretti) is certainly not something you’ll find on the supermarket shelves.  It is a delicious Mediterranean plant, mainly cultivated in Sicily, Spain and Northern Africa. It might look very much like chives, but the taste is more akin to spinach, because of it’s rich mineral notes. Barba dei frati though is tarter and has a crunchier texture, depending on how you cook it.

The top chefs that we supply love this product, and Stevie Parle of the Dock Kitchen used this delicious plant in his Brill recipe. Definitely worth a try!

Stevie Parle’s Brill poached with anchovy sauce recipe

Boil the water in a saucepan large enough to hold all your pieces of fish, with some space left around them. Add the white wine, bay, thyme, rosemary, peppercorns, fennel seeds and season with salt.

Serves 4 as a starter

This delicious recipe is from Jane Clarke’s ‘Nourish‘

200g smoked mackerel fillets (without pepper), skins removed
200g Ricotta cheese
a squeeze of fresh lemon juice
2 tbsp Greek yogurt
ground black pepper

CLICK HERE TO BUY ALL THE INGREDIENTS

Add all the ingredients to a food processor or blender, season with ground black pepper and whiz together until smooth.
Spread the pâté on toast or flatbreads or use in sandwiches. For sandwich rolls, spread over fresh, soft, good-quality white or wholemeal bread, crusts removed, then roll up. Cut across the roll into slices.

CLICK HERE TO ENTER OUR JANE CLARKE COMPETITION

A delicious pairing…

Spring is well on its way, but there’s still time to enjoy some winter treasures such as bold and syrupy blood oranges. They make a deliciously interesting match to the rich flavours of mackerel. Try it today!

2 Mackerel Fillets
Butter
1 Shallot
1 Blood Orange
1/2 Glass Dry White Wine
250g Broad Beans
Salt
Pepper

Fry the fish in some butter until golden, making sure not to overcook them. Season with salt and pepper and keep warm.

Blanch the broad beans for a few minutes in salted boiling water, then remove from their skin and set aside.

In the same pan where you cooked the fish, fry some thinly sliced shallot. Add the wine and let it evaporate, then add the juice of the orange and reduce to about half. Add the broad beans, taste and adjust the seasoning.

Place the fillets on the plates and pour over the sauce. Garnish with orange segments. Happy eating!

A tasty way to enjoy swordfish

Serves 4

4 Swordfish Steaks 200gr each
200gr Cherry Tomatoes from Pachino
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
2 Fennels
1 Garlic Glove
20gr Taggiasche Olives
100gr Chopped Wild Fennel
Salt
Freshly Ground Black Pepper

Remove the skin from the swordfish, wash and finely slice the fennel. Wash the cherry tomatoes and cut in half. Heat 4 tablespoons of extra virgin olive oil in a pan with the crushed garlic clove. Add the tomatoes and after a minute or so add the olives.

Remove the sauce from the pan, add the steaks and cook for a couple of minutes (make sure you do not overcook the fish or it will get a tough consistency).

Add salt and pepper, then add the wild fennel to the sauce and put back in the pan. Cook for another minute, then serve very hot topped with the sauce and a side of fennel dressed in oil and vinegar.