FISH & SELLFISH - Master Chef of Recipes Part 02

 

FISH & SELLFISH

Many cooks today neglect fish because they don’t quite understand what to with it. Too often they egg and breadcrumb it and fry it until it is hard, dry and tasteless; or they boil it until it disintegrates into o soft, flavorless mush.

 

Reasonable

Canned sardines and anchovies – Serve on buttered fingers of toast or black bread, garnished with sieved hard-boiled egg yolk and squeeze of lemon.

Canned tuna and salmon – Mix with a little finely chopped onion and freshly ground black pepper and dress with olive oil or lemon juice to taste.

Smoked salmon – Buy in pepper-thin slices professionally cut across the grain. Serve on lightly oiled plates, accompanied by thin slices of brown bread and butter, and wedges of lemon to squeeze over the top. Have a coarse-grinding mill of black pepper at hand.

Smoked trout – Skin and fillet smoked trout. Serve fillets on an oiled platter with lemon wedges (or whipped cream flavored with grated horseradish) and thin slices of brown bread and butter.

Sausages – Salami, Cervelat, Mortadella etc. Should be thinly sliced. If you are slicing them yourself remove the outer skin first. You’ll find it comes off much more neatly this way. When the buying any types of sausages, be sure you get the real continental import. Home-produced imitations don’t compare. I’m afraid.

French Turbot Salad

IMPERIAL

• 1 lb. turbot salt

• 4 tablespoons milk

• 8 oz. new potatoes

• 3-4 large fresh button mushrooms

• 6-8 tablespoons olive oil

• 3 tablespoons lemon juice

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped spring onion

•   Freshly ground pepper.

 

METRIC

•   450 g. turbot salt

• 4 tablespoons milk

• 8 oz. new potatoes

• 3-4 large fresh button mushrooms

• 6-8 tablespoons olive oil

•3 tablespoons lemon juice

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped spring onion

• Freshly ground pepper.

 

1.        Cut turbot into slices about ½ inches. (1 cm) thick.
2.        Bring a print of salted water to the boil in a saucepan. Add milk (to keep turbot white) and the slices of turbot. Reduce heat so that water barely bubbles and simmer turbot until it is cooked but still very firm, 12 to 15 minutes.
3.       Scrub potatoes clean but do not peel them; boil them in salted water, then drain; plunge into cold water and peel off skins as soon as potatoes can be handled.
4.      When turbot is cooked, drain it, and while still warm. Remove skin and bones. Cut turbot into 1-inch (2½ cm) cubes. Cut potatoes into ¼ inch (½ cm) cubes.
5.       Trim mushroom stems and wipe clean with a damp cloth. Peel mushrooms only if necessary and slice them thinly.
6.       Combine warm turbot and potatoes with thinly sliced mushroom in a large bowl. Toss with olive oil, lemon juice, finely chopped parsley and chopped spring onion, taking care not to break pieces of fish. Season to taste with salt and freshly ground black pepper, and allow to cool.
7.       Just before serving, correct seasoning and more olive oil and lemon juice if necessary. Serve cold.

Serves 3-4

Chef's tip;

The ideals omelets pan is made of very thick sheet metal; it should be used only for omelets or pancakes. Never wash an omelet pan; if it sticks, heat some salt in the pan then rub it over inside of pan using a wad of kitchen paper. Wipe clean with a dry cloth.