Salt & Pepper Fish

If you go into any bistro style cafe or pub in Australia you’re bound to find Salt & Pepper Calamari (or otherwise known as Squid) on the menu. I had one lonely old piece of raw fish in the fridge and wanted to make it a bit interesting so decided to make Salt & Pepper Fish.

This really is a quick and delicious way to serve fish. One piece goes a long way, as you can see in the photos. Two large pieces of fish would definitely feed a family of four with ease or you could cut into long goujons and serve as canapes for a party. It’s salty and a little bit spicy but you can control just how much pepper you use.

First cut your fish into pieces.

Add flour, salt, cracked black pepper, garlic powder and paprika.

You can use a plastic ziplock bag to put all the flour in and toss the fish that way. There’s less mess but my fish was a little fragile so I decided to do it in a bowl. Just make sure the fish is completely coated with the spiced flour mixture.

Heat olive oil in a shallow pan over moderate heat and fry fish until golden and cooked through. Be careful not to have the oil too hot or the outside will burn and the fish won’t be cooked inside.

Drain on absorbent paper and keep warm in a low oven or serve immediately.

 

Cooking the fish this way is quick, the fish stays moist and the pepper gives it a real bite. You can of course do this with calamari (squid), chicken, prawns or just about any other kind of meat. Serve with traditional hot chips and a side salad if desired.

Recipe

• 1 fresh fish fillet (this served 2 adults)
• 1/2 cup plain flour
• 1 tbs cracked black pepper (more or less to taste)
• 1 tbs salt flakes
• 1 tbs garlic powder
• 1 tbs paprika
• olive oil for deep frying

1. Cut fish into smaller pieces.
2. In a bowl, combine flour, black pepper, salt flakes, garlic powder and paprika and mix well.
3. Add fish and toss well to coat.
4. Heat oil in a pan and over moderate heat, fry fish each side until golden brown and cooked through (approx 5 mins depending on the thickness of the fish).
5. Drain well on absorbent paper.
6. Keep warm in a low oven or serve immediately with a chips and a side salad or Asian style vegetables and noodles.

One Pan Fish & Chips

Things have just got even busier around here lately, with me working, the kids back into their weekly dancing classes and throw in a summer head cold for good measure, I need easy, fast, preferably one pan meals to feed my family and fish and potatoes done in one pan couldn’t be easier. I’d been wanting to try this for ages so was forced to do it when I was stretched for time one evening.

Start by slicing washed potatoes (no need to peel them) really thin. I use a mandoline but if you’ve got good knife skills you should be able to get a consistent thin slice. The thinner the better for cooking time.

Toss them in a little olive oil, salt and pepper and place in layers in a frypan or skillet. I used an electric frypan but even a baking dish in the oven or the slow cooker would work well. The potatoes will crisp up underneath while you prepare the fish.

I always have fish in the freezer and for less than $9 for a kilo bag, they’re a good protein option to feed your family. Even with just 2 pieces of fish, you could do a quick stir fry or curry to feed 4. I’m lucky that my kids do like

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fish and will eat a whole fillet. Spray alfoil with a little oil spray and season the fish with salt and pepper. You could add lemon juice, a little butter or any seasonings you like.

Turn the potatoes over and you’ll see that they’re all golden and crunchy, just like takeaway fish and chips, not necessarily in a ‘chip’ shape.

Place the foil wrapped fish on top of the potatoes and in about 10 minutes, dinner will be ready. It really couldn’t be easier. I used my electric frypan for this dish and have been relying on it and my slow cooker more to organise the evening meal. We received an electric frypan for an engagement present and I realised I never owned one. Mum used it for just about every evening meal and I’m realising just how versatile it really is. 

Serve the fish fillet on top of the potatoes with a side salad and dinner is done. The whole process probably took about 30 minutes which was great when I was feeling exhausted and not really up to cooking. The price was definitely a lot cheaper (and probably healthier) and quicker than buying takeaway fish and chips. A good standby for a mid week meal.

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One Pan Fish & Chips

A quick alternative to takeaway fish and chips using one pan to fry the thinly sliced potatoes and steam the fish wrapped in alfoil.

Prep Time 10 minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes

Total Time 30 minutes

Servings 4

Author Anne

Ingredients

• 4 fish fillets
• potatoes washed and thinly sliced (enough for 4 people)
• olive oil
• salt and pepper
• oil spray

Instructions

1. Toss sliced potatoes in a little olive oil and salt and pepper.
2. Place potatoes in layers in a frypan.
3. Prepare fish by wrapping in alfoil sprayed with a little oil and season with salt and pepper.
4. Cook potatoes on one side for approx 10 minutes until golden brown.
5. Place alfoil wrapped fish parcels on top of sliced potatoes and cook for a further 10 minutes.
6. Serve with a side salad.

Recipe Notes

Can use an electric frypan, skillet, bake in the oven or slow cooker.
Fish can be flavoured with lemon, garlic, herbs or other seasonings of your choice.

"In the Pan" Asian Steamed Fish Parcels

If you know me, you know I love to cook. I could spend 2 solid days in the kitchen preparing for a dinner party or preparing meals in advance and baking up sweet treats. Somewhere, in the last 10 years (since the birth of my daughter), it’s been a matter of trying to get something on the table in a hurry without giving up my love of cooking. I’m always looking for quick ways to produce nice tasting meals but in a damn hurry. Why is everything in a damn hurry where kids are concerned? Instead of heating up the oven, I popped these Asian Fish Parcels wrapped in aluminium foil in the electric frypan and they turned out a treat.

I can get 1 kilo of skinless, boneless white fish fillets for less than $10 from the supermarket and they’re a great cheap meat option and don’t taste too bad. It was just a matter of spraying a piece of foil, topping with a fillet of fish, sprinkling some Asian flavours on top, sealing and popping in the pan, just like that. Within about 10 minutes, they were cooked.

With the lid popped on, there’s no need to turn the fish over. The steam generated within the foil cooks the fish completely.

Served with some steamed rice and Asian style vegetables, this is a quick, hearty, healthy meal with little or no fat used in the cooking. Traditionally the fish may have been wrapped in paper and baked in the oven but this is a great alternative. If you’re out and about on holidays, camping for example, this would be a great way to serve your freshly caught fish directly on a pan over the fire. Hope you give it a try.

“In the Pan” Asian Steamed Fish Parcels

• fish fillets
• oil spray
• crushed garlic
• ground ginger
• soy sauce
• sesame oil

To serve:

• steamed rice
• Asian vegetables

1. Spray a piece of foil larger than the size of fish with oil spray and place the fish fillet on top.
2. Top fish with a couple drops of sesame oil and soy sauce and a shake of ground ginger. 
3. Spread with crushed garlic.
4. Seal fish parcels well and pop in either an electric frypan or stove top pan and cook for approximately 10 mins or until fish is cooked.
5. Serve with steamed rice and Asian style vegetables.

3 ingredient fish curry

You’ve heard of the term “curry in a hurry”? Well this dish couldn’t be any easier especially after you’ve had ‘one of those days’. We were recently involved in helping Damien’s Mum move from her unit into a nursing home. The poor woman’s health has declined over the months and she just couldn’t stay on her own anymore. She had a one bedroom unit that needed packing up, cleaned and some things moved to her in the nursing home and all the things she no longer needed back to our place into storage. We worked for 3 days doing this and being an hour away from where we lived, we were just about exhausted each day we got home. This dish took literally minutes to prepare and on a cool night, just what the doctor ordered.

I remember someone cooking me something like this years ago and they called it a Malaysian Fish Curry. I think our idea of Malaysian and other Asian curries has come a long way since then and we  have access to a lot of Asian ingredients, grown here in Australia and authentic tasting curry pastes are readily available in the supermarket. That’s what I tend to use in my Thai curries but this recipe is a great standby. It’s just a matter of getting a can of coconut milk on the boil and adding a tablespoon (or more) of regular curry powder.

I buy a kilo of frozen white fish fillets for less than $10 from the supermarket so fish is a regular on our menu. It’s pretty cheap compared to red meat, there’s no bones and most importantly, my kids eat it. Add the fish to the boiling coconut milk mixture, add plenty of salt and pepper and within about 5 minutes, the fish will be cooked.

Whenever I cook rice, I tend to cook up 2 or 3 cups and freeze the leftover rice in serving size portions. It’s just a matter of letting it defrost or pouring boiling hot water over it. Serve with a side of fresh vegetables and dinner is on the table in less than 15 minutes. This meal went down a treat after our busy day and it just goes to show that you don’t need to buy takeaway even when you can’t be bothered cooking. Other than opening the can of coconut milk, cutting up a few vegies and serving it in a bowl, there really wasn’t anything to it. It may not be an authentic Indian, Thai or Malaysian curry but it sure was good.

3 Ingredient Fish Curry

• fresh fish, cut into bite sized pieces
• can of coconut milk
• 1 tbs curry powder (or more to taste)
• salt & pepper

1. Boil coconut milk and add curry powder.
2. Add fish pieces, turning after a couple minutes and boil until cooked through (approx 5 minutes).
3. Serve with rice and steamed vegetables.

14 fish recipes for Good Friday

If you’re having fish this Good Friday, or any day for that matter, here are 14 fish recipes from the blog.

You don’t need to use expensive types of fish or seafood. Frozen white fish can be bought from the supermarket. Check your local fishmonger or seafood co-op for the specials of the day. 

Peeled prawns are more expensive than unpeeled. Even tinned fish like salmon or tuna can make for a really tasty seafood or fish meal.

Mediterranean Salmon Salad

 

Prawn & Avocado Salad

 

 

Salade Niçoise

 

Spicy Prawn & Plum Salad

 

 

Fish Biryani with Cashews

 

Blackened Fish Burger with Coriander Lime Mayo

 

 

Bouillinade (Fish & Potato Stew)

 

 

Crunchy Cashew Coated Fish

Fish a la Meunière

 

Mediterranean Salmon with Cheesy Herb Risoni

 

Mediterranean Salmon Parcels with Dill & Mustard Potatoes

 

 

Spicy Baked Fish with Mango Salsa

 

Spicy Battered Fish & Oven Baked Chips

 

Thai Basil & Macadamia Pesto topped Fish

Fish Mornay and a basic white sauce

This is one of those retro meals from the 70’s that paved the way for such delights as Tuna Mornay, Salmon Mornay, filled vol-au-vents and creamy pie fillings. Where we would be without them? I had one piece of white fish fillet in the freezer plus wanted to ‘move along’ a tin of green beans. (Who invented putting green beans in a tin? Not the nicest tasting thing but did the job.)

If you can make a basic white sauce, I think you can make a pretty good tasting meal out of anything. We had corned meat and vegetables last night for dinner and whipping up a basic white sauce to serve with it rounded the meal off nicely. Even if you have plain old vegetables. Top them with a white sauce and grated cheese, put under the grill until melted and you’ll have the kids

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eating vegetables in no time. (Well most kids, my daughter excluded.)

Basic White Sauce

• 2 tablespoons butter (or margarine)
• 2 tablespoons plain flour
• 1 cup milk

Note:  Double or triple the quantities depending on the amount of sauce you need.

1. Melt butter in a saucepan over medium heat.
2. Add flour, stirring for approx 1 minute. This cooks off the ‘raw’ taste of the flour.
3. Add milk and stir with a wooden spoon or whisk until thickened. This should take about 3-5 minutes.

Add fish, prawns, tinned fish, chicken and vegetables for pie fillings, served over rice or pasta, stirred through pasta and baked in the oven for a pasta bake. Add a cup of any kind of cheese for a cheese sauce. Add 1 tablespoon of curry powder for a curried white sauce. This basic white sauce tastes far better than anything you get in a jar and its made in 5 minutes.

Blackened Fish Burger with Coriander Lime Mayo

 

I do love a cooking challenge and when I saw Jutta from Hungry Little Girl was starting the New Year off with one, I decided to join up. By signing up, I am given a ‘secret’ blogger to stalk check out and cook one of their recipes and then blog about it with all recipes linking up over at the Hungry Little Girl web site on the 20th of each month. I can’t wait to find out who was allocated me and which of my recipes they cooked.

Anyway, my partner was Bobbi from Bobbi’s Kozy Kitchen. Bobbi has an amazing story. She was raised by a Mum who cooked ordinary meals and she didn’t really learn to cook anything too interesting herself. After having a gastric bypass operation she decided to try and learn to create fresh, healthy meals that relied upon natural ingredients and nothing from a packet or jar (my kind of girl).

 

I had a fun time looking through all her recipes and I had about half a dozen I wanted to try. I originally had planned the Cheesy Poblano Chicken but its been so hot here in Queensland, I decided to have something that didn’t require too much effort or generate too much heat in the kitchen. (This one is on my saved list to try come winter time.)

 

Bobbi recreates famous celebrity chef’s meals and this Blackened Tilapia Sandwich with Cilantro Lime Mayonnaise originally by Paula Dean was going to be just perfect for lunch. I made a couple changes because I didn’t have a few of the ingredients but it was just delicious. 

 

 

I’m not really sure what type of fish tilapia is and if we can even get it here in Australia but I just used a frozen  basa fillet I had. I didn’t have onion or garlic powder either so substituted with fresh. I didn’t have a dry spice to cook the fish in but rather a wet mix which I spread on the fish

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while cooking. I was going to use Greek yoghurt instead of mayonnaise in the coriander mayo but already had it mixed before I remembered. This is definitely something I’ll cook again. It was really filling and delicious and a great meal for a warm day. I can’t wait to try some of Bobbi’s other recipes. It was great getting to know you Bobbi! What an inspiration you are.

 

Blackened Fish Burger with Coriander Mayo

 

• 1 white fish fillet
• 1 bread roll (I used focaccia)
• 2 tbs sweet paprika
• 1 tbs ground thyme
• 1 tsp finely diced onion
• 1 tsp crushed garlic
• 1/2 tsp salt
• chilli to taste
• olive oil for frying
• salad greens
• mango salsa (diced fresh mango and store bought Mexican tomato salsa)
• 2 tbs mayonnaise
• 1 tbs finely chopped coriander
• 1 tsp lime juice

 

 

 

 

1. Combine paprika, dried thyme, diced onion, crushed garlic, salt and chilli in a mortar and pestle (or blender) and grind to form a paste.
2. Heat oil in pan and once hot, place fish fillet in pan and spread with spice paste. After 3 minutes, turn fish and repeat with remaining spice blend.
3. Mix mayonnaise, coriander and lime.
4. Toast bun and spread with coriander mayonnaise and add salad greens.
5. Top with fish and mango salsa.

Serves 1. Multiply quantities depending on number of people you are serving.

 

Here’s a quick tip. When dicing mango, cut ‘cheeks’ of mango and slice horizontally and vertically into mango cheek while skin is still intact. Turn skin ‘inside out’ and remove flesh straight into a bowl. 

 

 

 I hope you go and check out Bobbi at Bobbi’s Kozy Kitchen. I’m off to go and follow her now. I didn’t want her to know I was stalking her! If you’d like to join up in the Surprise Recipe Swap, head on over to Hungry Little Girl and get on the list. I can’t wait to find out who I will be allocated in February. Thanks so much Jutta for organising this.