Lékué Omelette Maker & Lékué Steam Case Review: Quick & Delicious Food

Posted on July 28, 2016 by Catherine Balavage

Anything that makes family life easier has Frost onside. Mealtimes can be particularly exhausting, so we were excited to review two new products from Lékué. An omelette maker and a steam case. Do these kitchen solutions make quick, easy and healthy meals? Read on and find out.

First we tried the Omelette Maker. There are two ways of doing things. One is to add the omelette mix into the case for a plain omelette, the other is to add other ingredients first (and cook them for a few minutes), and then add the mix (eggs, milk and salt). You then pop it in the microwave. If you add lots of ingredients, only add two eggs. Otherwise it might spill over. You can make a delicious plain omelette in two minutes. Importantly, the omelette maker is BPA free. It has a ten-year guarantee and is 100% platinum silicone, just like the steam case. Both also come with handy booklets with lots of tasty recipes and are dishwasher safe (very important!). We were a huge fan of the omelette maker. Quick, easy and delicious. Just like they promised.

The Steam Case is also a handy and innovative kitchen gadget. You just add the ingredients and then microwave for two minutes. The standard size does 1-2 people, the family size does 4-5. The Steam Case allows you to steam your food in the oven as well as the microwave. The food is cooked in its own juices and retains the nutrients. Quick, easy and delicious, just like the omelette maker. We liked both of these gadgets, and they were easy to clean in the dishwasher. Recommended.

The Power Breakfast

The 4 minute spinach and mushroom omelette

Pop this in microwave, check your emails and come back to a light a fluffy omelette full of fibre and protein to keep you full until lunch

Ingredients

50 g of spinach (¼ cup)

50 g of mushrooms (¼ cup)

30 g of onion (2 tbsp)

1 tablespoon of water

1 tablespoon of olive oil

Salt

2 tablespoons of milk

2 eggs

Lékué Omelette Maker RRP £10.99

Slice the mushrooms, chop the onion and place it all inside the Omelettemaker along with the spinach, oil, water and salt.
Close the lid and cook in the microwave for 2 minutes at 800 W.
In a bowl, beat the eggs along with the milk and a pinch of salt.
Pour into the Omelettemaker and mix with the rest of ingredients.
Cook for 2 minutes in the microwave at 800 W.
Turn the Omeletteover and cook for another 30 seconds.

Lunch – al desk-o

10 minutes fish with summer lemon vegetables

Taste the Mediterranean without leaving your swivel chair on your lunch break

Ingredients

1 fillet white fish (approx. 150 g)

1/2 cup frozen peas

½ courgette

1 tablespoon butter

½ lemon

Salt

Pepper
Lékué Steam Case

Cut the fish into strips, add salt and pepper, place in the mini steam case.
Add the peas, the courgette washed and cut into cubes, sprinkle with lemon and add butter in chunks. Close the mini steam case.
Cook in the microwave oven on high at 650-800W for 2 minutes.
Stir a little and serve.

Both available online at Lekue.com, Selfridges.com and Ocado.com

National BBQ Week

Posted on June 2, 2016 by Christian Gott

Barbecue Diplomacy and the Most Important BBQ That Never Was – A Recipe for Walter Jetton’s BBQ Sauce

The culinary aware reader will know we are in the middle of National BBQ Week, you knew that didn’t you? I learnt that there is a National Hotdog Council over in America yesterday, so it really is never too late to learn and with that in mind I thought I would write a little about Lyndon B. Johnson. By nineteen sixty-three Lyndon B. Johnson had risen above the hurly-burly politics of the Lone star state to be vice president of the United States in the administration of the meteoric John F Kennedy. In a government of outstanding personalities including the president’s charismatic brother the attorney general, secretary of defense Robert McNamara and secretary of state Dean Rusk many saw Johnson’s role as mere window dressing. Yet this homely former school teacher established himself with quiet determination and pioneered what became known as barbecue diplomacy. As people relaxed due to the informal atmosphere of a barbecue around a pit or grill it was often easier for LBJ to talk business than in the rigid formal settings of a state banquette. My apologies as this is definitely an apolitical blog we need to talk more about the barbecue and not the man.

LBJ Photo.jpg

At his home on the banks of the Perdernale river, LBJ hosted an array of important barbecues for VIP dignitaries and most of these were catered for by Walter Jettson. He ran a local, well for Texas, catering company in Fort Worth and prepared the food at the LBJ ranch. On November 23, 1963 the staff of the ranch and Jettson were preparing for the biggest event of their lives the president was to visit and eat smoked ribs and brisket. As we all know he was never to make it. LBJ was sworn in as the thirty-sixth president of the United States on board Air force One carrying the body of President Kennedy back to Washington. Jettson was to become the President’s Pitmaster * and LBJ even flew him around the country to cater at political rallies. On the back of his celebrity, Jetton published a barbecue cookbook, which is unfortunately out of print but available on Amazon and other retailers.

Jetton catered for the first barbecue at the White House and continued to do so during LBJ’s term in office. When he decided not to stand for re-election LBJ hosted one last farewell barbecue on the White House lawns for over two hundred friends and supporters. The Texas style ribs must have been quite special as the Swiss-born, formally trained, White House head chef Henry Haller, wrote in his The White House Family Cookbook, ” He did a terrific job and I was most impressed with the results. His barbecue sauce avoided all of the common flaws (over sweetening, overcooking, excessive thinning) and by serving the sauce separately, he also avoided drying out the meat. ”

*Pit Master : An experienced barbecue cook, a skilled craftsman, who watches over the pit and can tell by sight, sound, smell, and touch, if it is running too hot or too cold, when it needs fuel, when to add wood, when to add sauce, and when the meat is ready.

For more information on Barbecuing visit www.joyofgrilling.com/glossary/

Here is my only slightly amended version of Walter Jetton’s recipe. As the full recipe is of authentic American origin it is measured in cups. A cup is between 200 and 250ml, providing one standard cup is used the proportions will work.

Walter Jettons’s BBQ Sauce

1 1/2 cups Water

1 cup Ketchup

1/2 cup Cider Vinegar

3 Stalks Celery, washed and chopped

1/4 cup Butter

1/4 cup Worcestershire Sauce

1/2 cup Onion, peeled and finely chopped

3 Bay Leaves

1 Large Clove Garlic, peeled and minced

½ tablespoon Sugar

1 teaspoon Chilli Powder

1 teaspoon Smoked Paprika

1/8 teaspoon Sea Salt

pinch of freshly ground Black Pepper

Mix all ingredients together. Place in a heavy-bottomed saucepan and bring to a boil and simmer for ½ an hour. Remove from heat and strain.

Walter Jetton’s LBJ Barbecue Cookbook– By the Caterer to the LBJ Ranch, Written with Arthur Whitman, 1965, Pocket Books.

Pizzicotto my New Favourite Italian

Posted on June 1, 2016 by Kesh

Pizzicotto, sister restaurant to the Kensington gem ‘il portico’ has been causing a stir on the London Restaurant scene. Famous for their Charcoal Based Pizza this is not the only showstopper they serve here but they also serve up an unbeatable authentic and traditional Italian fayre. As a food writer, Italian cuisine can be hard to come by and get right. We live in a city which celebrates Pizza and Pasta and in a takeaway generation, there are many much-loved chains that consumer tend to stick to. However, when looking for Italian food at it’s finest we want to have it all and Pizzicotto delivers not only a menu which is true to Italy but an ambience and atmosphere worthy of a true Mediterranean experience.

Nestled at the quieter end of High St. Ken lies this hidden gem set behind a beautiful green frontage, this is not the stereotypical Italian trattoria but something light and airy and instantly welcoming. The restaurant is adorned with huge trees inside the building itself and an open wood fired Pizza oven and I genuinely feel like I’m a thousand miles from London. My guest is late but i’m pleased because this is somewhere I would gladly eat alone and soak up the atmosphere… and the huge Aperol Spritz my server brings over. The aperitif selection is typically Italian and it would be rude not to start my dinner with a glass of Aperol and have some Garlic Focaccia while i’m waiting. Normally i’m not one to fill up on bread but there is something light and more-ish about it.

The menu is ample and true to Italian style, everything you could want is on there. They serve up a wide range of Antipasti and Starters; Bruschetta, Speciality Cheeses and Meats and Primi Pastas, which can also be served as mains, our server helps our decision. She explains to us Culatello Di Zibello is a very fine cured ham like Prosciutto and extremely rare so we jump at the chance to try this out, and we also opt for the classic Pork Belly Tagliatelle. She’s right, the Culatello tastes as precious as it is and I can only describe it as a melt in the mouth, cured meat heaven and very much worth the journey to Pizzicotto just to try the Culatello. Always having tried Tagliatelle with Beef, the difference in flavour when made me with Pork Belly is remarkable. The texture is much more tender, the flavour richer and meatier and the portion size is perfect as a starter plate.

The Charcoal Based Pizza is what we really came here for but with a mammoth selection of toppings we spend a while deciding on this too. As well as this we decide to order one of their grilled dishes and opt for the Tartare Grade Tuna Steak served with Fennel Salad. We share both, but to be perfectly honest, the Pizza was so light that I could have polished off the Pizza as well as the Tuna they were that delicious. Don’t be put off by the burnt look of the Pizza, it’s all charcoal and if that doesn’t turn you on, the taste is no different and the benefits of activated charcoal speak for themselves. Having cut down on Pizza’s recently due to the effects of wheat in my body, activated charcoal base is a real blessing and we can talk about it as much as we like but the proof is in the pudding, or in this case the Pizza, there really is no bloat and the fact I could have easily have eaten the whole thing without undoing my jeans is evidence enough. The Tuna was grilled to absolute perfection and the Fennel Salad accompanied well. I had never thought to try Tuna with Fennel as it’s quite a heavy, meaty fish but the two combined to create the flavour of the sea harmoniously. We paired both dishes with a delicious Sauvignon Bianco which was crispy and fresh and served in a huge glass. Perfecto!

Finally we were treated to the specials on the Dessert menu which included Nutella Pizza!! I bet you can guess what we ordered, and thankfully it wasn’t a full-sized Pizza but one slice which we paired with a raspberry Ice Cream. Both were indulgent, heavenly but still light! How Pizzicotto have managed to balance the huge Italian Flavours with the light as air Pizzas and Pastas is nothing short of remarkable and this is certainly the type of Italian where you can appreciate the quality of the produce and not feel uncomfortably stuffed. The highlight was The Activated Charcoal Pizza so it’s definitely worth the trip here to grab yourself a slice of that but overall the entire menu was divine from start to finish. This is certainly an Italian I will be recommending. Cin Cin.

Poached Lobster

Posted on May 25, 2016 by Christian Gott

One of the joys of living on an island like Jersey is the seafood, I mean we have the Jersey Royal potato, fantastic vegetables but really it is all about the seafood and how. Faced with the choice of briny Royal Bay of Grouville oysters, plump sweet mussels fresh from the sea, fat diver caught scallops, where do I start? The undoubted stars of the seafood show are freshly caught crab and lobster. I waiver between them both sometimes favouring a big slice of rich crab tart or a hand-picked crab salad and at others a regal lobster supper. I’m kind of the side of lobster at the moment so I thought I would share how to prepare a delicious lobster.

In America, the Lobster is very often simply broiled ( grilled ) with oodles and oodles of butter on the side, to dip the succulent cooked lobster meat in, and it comes with a warning about Cardiac arrests. Equally popular is the fabulously addictive lobster roll with creamy mayonnaise and fresh dill. Around the world, the lobster, when treated with care, stir-fried, grilled and baked in amazing recipes is a seafood sensation. There are, however, still a certain class of restaurant where only a small number of ways to serve lobster are contemplated, in the classic sauces Newburg, American and Thermidor. Each of these blockbuster, in-your-face recipes in the right hands can be an amazing dining experience but they can be much maligned. I am at heart a big fan of enjoying the delicate flavour of lobster as unadorned as possible and simply poached.

This, however, is not a simple matter, the purist would have you boil the lobster in sea water, this is not always easy or even safe. The alternative is fresh water with added sea salt (add 25 gr of natural sea salt per litre of water). My own choice is in a court bullion which is an ideal cooking medium for poaching fish, seafood and chicken. I have adapted my recipe from Richard Onley’s, ‘The French Menu Cookbook’, a recently reprinted classic and thoroughly good read. If you cannot get your hands on a Jersey lobster I thoroughly recommend Cornish as a great alternative.

For 1 or 2 750 gr / 1 kg Lobsters

4 Litres of cold Water

1 Large glass White Wine

3 Large Shallots, peeled and chopped

1 Medium Stick of Celery, chopped

1 Medium Carrot, peeled and chopped

White of 1 Leek, thoroughly washed and sliced

½ Bulb of Fennel, washed and sliced

1 Bay Leaf

1 Sprig fresh Thyme

1 Sprig Tarragon

8-10 fresh Parsley Stems

½ teaspoon Black Peppercorns, crushed

1 Lemon, halved

Place all the ingredients in a very, very large pan, cover and bring to the boil. Add the lobsters and bring back to the boil and simmer for eight to ten minutes. Using a spider remove the lobsters and plunge in lots of iced water to arrest any further cooking.

Today’s top tip is when poaching lobsters place them in your freezer ten minutes prior to cooking, this will sedate the lobsters sufficiently to allow you easily drop them in your boiling pan without the lobsters thrashing about and splashing you with scolding hot liquid.

Remove the lobsters and set aside to drain. Place a chopping board on a damp kitchen cloth to prevent it from slipping. Place the lobster on the board and hold firmly by the tail. Find the cross on top of the lobsters back and using a large cooks knife cut through the shell towards the head. Turn the lobster around to then cut through the tail.

The slushy material in the head cavity can be washed out and the shells thoroughly washed. Along the tail meat is a small dark tube, through which the lobster removes waste. Carefully pick out the tube. Reverse the tails by taking them out and placing in the opposite shell. Then using a cleaned board, you can break out the claw meat. Using a fine crochet hook or lobster pick remove the two smaller pieces of lobster. Holding the tip of the claw tightly between finger and thumb crack open the claw using the flat back edge of a large cook’s knife.

Remove the rubber band and pull down on the smaller claw, it will come off pulling with a small transparent membrane. This allows you to remove the lobster claw meat. Fill the empty head cavity with the picked lobster meat. You can serve the lobster with the claw in the cracked shell if you wish, or simply halved with a lobster claw and pick.

Re-charge your Sunday nights at The Piano Works Farringdon

Posted on May 25, 2016 by Kesh

Everyone knows Sundays are the new Saturdays and we have just the solution for a much needed Sunday night elixir. London’s popular late-night, live music venue The Piano Works have come up with the perfect excuse to reclaim your Sunday evenings by launching live music performances by the legendary Patrick Alan and his Righteous Ten.

If you would like to spend the evening with the man who helped launch the careers of Amy Winehouse and Christina Aguilera then Sunday nights at The Piano Works are just for you. We were lucky enough to attend the launch and were instantly transported to what can only resemble a funky Manhattan Jazz Club. The Cocktails were a perfect accompaniment to bobbing along at the bar to some of the most perfectly executed soulful hits finished off with a mesmerising tribute to Prince. The energy and soul that oozes from the band was infectious throughout the venue with many punters up on their feet by the end. We simply couldn’t resist. Feel free to really indulge in a little Sunday night therapy and order a dish or two from the menu. From tapas-style dishes to a variety of filled rolls and salads you will not go hungry here. Everything is well-made, fresh and satisfying, we recommend the Soft-Shell Crab Roll. All in all, we couldn’t think of anything else we’d rather be doing on a Sunday night, the ambience is uplifting and we will definitely be back for more. Patrick Alan will continue his residency on the first Sunday of every month.

For listings or more info visit

http://pianoworks.bar

5 Perfect Gift Ideas for Foodies

Posted on May 23, 2016 by Frostie

Are you looking for the perfect gift for a foodie? Look no further! We’ve done the hard work for you and served up five of the tastiest, most delicious and most mouth watering presents you could give your loved right now…

1. A hamper or box set

A hamper filled with unusual (or even unheard of) ingredients from a far flung corner of the globe is sure to win you a great response! Treat someone special to a hamper for vegans, Persian cuisine or authentic Korean cooking, as well as box sets containing food styling kits and essential equipment. You’re bound to hit the nail on the head by offering a gift of delectable goodies like this to spice up their kitchens, introducing their taste buds to brand new flavour combinations and kitting them out with top of the range tools.

2. A pasta making machine

Got a friend who loves Italian cuisine and gets a real sense of satisfaction from crafting their own food? Buy them a pasta making machine! They’ll love sifting through recipe books and trawling online for recommendations for the perfect pasta dough (and sauce to accompany it!). A gift like this will get them rolling up their sleeves to feed sheets of silky, golden dough through a machine, churning out ribbons of beautiful tagliatelle pasta ready for a pot of boiling water… just make sure you’re there to dig into the final dish!

3. The Thug Kitchen Cookbook

If the person you love is into food, you’ll already have clocked the rows upon rows of cookbooks on their shelves. So why add another, you ask? Well, because their current books are (pretty much) all the same – there’s nothing original between those pages, the writers are sometimes a million miles from reality, and the recipes are delivered with zero sass. So, treat your foodie friend to the Thug Kitchen Cookbook (a number 1 New York Times Best Seller with over 700,000 Facebook fans) and get them fired up about cooking delicious dishes with a side serving of attitude.

4. Foodie dice

Even foodies struggle to think of new and exciting dishes every day of the week, so why not treat them to a set of foodie dice? All they have to do is roll the dice to read the resulting ingredient combinations before rummaging through the fridge to whip up a delectable dinner. No two meals will be alike again, using the dice to gamble on over 186,000 possible recipe combinations with additional dice for seasonal veggies and spices. You’re guaranteed to help spark some creativity in the kitchen with this gift!

5. A magazine subscription

One of the best gift ideas for women who love their food (and men too, for that matter) is a magazine subscription! With no expiry date, no allergens and a lot of inspiration, the lucky recipient is going to love receiving a brand new copy of their favourite magazine every month, flicking straight to the recipe section to try out a new dish. Why not nominate yourself to come over and test their creations?

By Patrick Vernon

The Perfect Burger

Posted on May 11, 2016 by Christian Gott

A quick look at the weather forecast confirms that I have not mistaken a rise in the UESW Index*, if as expected we do have a mini heat wave then it is time to brush off the barbecue and go get out the gas fired grill. Speed to your shed or garage and send the spiders spinning and check the charcoal. I get excited about barbecuing pretty much anything but today is all about the burger. The burger has become a much-maligned meal when it has the true potential for mouth-watering, meaty magnificence. Our supermarket freezers are stuffed with mechanically extracted, pulverised, ground and additive enhanced excuses and many of the massive chain restaurants serve products that are little better. If you intend to barbecue ( or grill if you must ) please, please, please have a go at making some yourself.

At the heart of every burger is the meat to fat ratio, when selecting your cuts of meat to mince, you ideally want to achieve around 85% lean meat. The fat is very important to your finished burger, much of the flavour comes from the fat during cooking and is responsible for the correct mouthfeel of the finished product. The fat moistens the burger as it cooks but much of the fat will drain off onto your barbecue. If you cook too close to the coals this is when you get flaring as the fat ignites. Less than 15% fat and your burger will be dry, much more and your burger will shrink drastically during cooking. The finished burger will only be, a not unhealthy 5% fat so fear not if you are trying to diet, it is better for you than you think, positively rocking paleo speaking. You can ask your butcher for advice on which cuts to use but a fifty/ fifty split of ground chuck and ground sirloin will achieve outstanding results.

If you ask you butcher for advice he can help you with the next stage and mince your beef for you. You want to get a coarse grind. Too fine and the mixture is sloppy and the end result can be like rubber. You want to avoid working the meat as much as possible, your butcher will grind the beef in an industrial mincer which will process the beef quicker than a small handheld mincer. Many commercial burgers included numerous other ingredients but I like to keep it simple with just sea salt and plenty of freshly ground black pepper. If you do want to add other ingredients, an onion is just about acceptable, dice them very, very finely. Anything over the finest dice and the added ingredients will not cook and the minced beef will not hold together leaving you with burger pieces on the grill.

If your butcher prepares your mince for you, chill it for a couple of hours before you prepare the actual burgers. Keeping your seasoned burger mince cold by placing it in a bowl, in another bowl packed with ice, will result in a much better burger and help ensure a safe hygienic production. You could purchase a burger press if you are going to barbecue every weekend but it is just as easy to shape a medium sized handful into a ball then lightly pat it flat. Run some cold water over your hands to keep them cool before you shape your burgers and try to work them as gently and as little as possible. Over handling bruises the meat and will result in a tough, dry burger. Cover a tray with cling film and place the completed burgers onto the film. Cover with more cling film and store in the refrigerator until cooking time

Fire up your clean barbecue and get the coals nice and hot so the grill heats up. Give the grill a good going over with a wire brush then very carefully give the bars a quick wipe of oil. The safest method is to sprinkle some vegetable oil on a thick fold of kitchen paper. Using barbecue tongues wipe the oiled paper over the grill to wipe off any remaining burnt fragments and charcoal dust. Once the barbecue is ready we can cook.

Brush the chilled burgers with a little olive oil to help prevent sticking and place on the grill. Quickly press down with your thumb in the centre of each burger to leave a slight indentation, as the meat cooks and the proteins contract and pull together this will stop the burger looking like a rugby ball, or for you Americans one shaped just like your footballs. Aim to leave around a third of your grill empty. You might think this is an underemployment of your glowing coals but if you do get flare ups you will have space to move your burgers and prevent them from burning. After three minutes give the burgers a ninety-degree turn ( that’s one quarter-turn ). If you think your burger is cooking too fast and it will burn just raise the grill one notch from the coals. Turning the burger will give the criss-cross appearance of char marks on your burger that will demonstrate your professional cooking skills. Do not be tempted to squash the burger with your spatula as this squeezes out the tasty melted fat leaving a dry burger.

After another two minutes, your burger is should be ready to flip, the edges will be browning and you might see pinkish pearls of moisture on the burger surface. As you develop your barbecue grilling skills you will learn the cooking times of different meats and cuts. You really only ever have to turn the burger over once let it cook for three more minutes and you can then check if it is ready. The cooking time is directly proportional to the thickness of your burger when it is ready any escaping juices will be clear and the internal temperature if you check it with a thermometer should be over 80C / 180F.

Place the cooked burgers on a warm plate, cover with foil and place to the side of the barbecue to keep warm and let them rest for a few minutes. Brush the cut sides of your burger rolls with a little melted butter and toast them over the coals. The rest is up to you, personally, I favour sliced pickles, crisp lettuce, and really ripe tomatoes and maybe a slice of Monterey Jack Cheese. Enjoy.

* Unexpected Early Short Wearing – the major exponent is my friend Steven but he is South African and cannot help it.

Pan Fried Sea bass and Jersey Royal Potatoes

Posted on April 29, 2016 by Christian Gott

The Jersey Royal season is reaching a peak and around the island honesty boxes are full of bags of delicious potatoes. Bizarrely you will probably be able to buy them cheaper on the mainland due to the buying power of the supermarkets but I guess I can console myself with some very low food miles. I wrote last year about the history of the Jersey Royal and here is a very light and tasty way of serving up this year’s harvest. To keep it really local I am going to use some fresh line-caught Sea Bass, Jersey Dairy Salted Butter and island grown Vine Tomatoes.

A good fishmonger should be able to source your Sea Bass for you, as a cheaper alternative, you could do worse than take a look at Sea Bream as an alternative. A good local fishmonger with an ice tray full of fish and seafood, caught from our coastal waters, should be treasured. Along with your local butcher and greengrocer, he should be on the family Christmas card list, invited to weddings and treated as a valued friend. Not only will he have an array of fish to tempt you but can provide advice and help prepare your lunch or dinner. This is an ideal recipe to be served as a delicious, but quick and simple to cook supper.

Pan-fried Sea Bass with Jersey Royals serves 4

4 Medium Sea Bass fillets, pin boned and de-scaled

( Your fishmonger should do this for you )

500 gr Jersey Royal Potatoes

50 ml Good quality Olive Oil

25 gr Salted Butter

100 gr Vine Cherry or Baby Plum Tomatoes

1 small Red Onion, peeled and very finely chopped

2 Cloves of Garlic, peeled and very finely chopped

1 small Chilli, de-seeded and very finely chopped

Zest and Juice of 1 fresh Lime

A small handful of fresh Coriander Leaves

½ teaspoon Coriander seeds

½ teaspoon Caster Sugar

Sea Salt and freshly cracked Black Pepper

Prepare the Jersey Royal potatoes by washing in cold water, rubbing any dirt off with a cloth. Place in a pan of cold lightly salted water and bring to the boil. Simmer for about ten minutes, depending on size until just cooked and they fall off the point of a small sharp knife. Place the pan under a cold tap and run until the potatoes are cold and the cooking process is arrested.

Halve the cherry tomatoes and place in a bowl with the onion and the chilli. Sprinkle with the sugar. Toast the coriander seeds in a small sauté pan over a moderate heat to release the essential oils and develop the flavour add a splash of olive oil and one clove of the garlic. Sauté for two minutes without burning either the garlic or the coriander, gently crush in a pestle or food processor and add to the bowl of tomatoes. Add the lime juice and zest and one fluid ounce of the olive oil, mix well and season then set aside.

Prepare the sea bass fillets by carefully scoring parallel lines just through the skin with a very sharp knife point. This will help prevent the fish from curling up in the pan during cooking. Generously season the fish fillets on both sides. Heat two medium sauté pans and divide the remaining butter and oil, when the butter is melted and starting to foam, add the potatoes to the first and the fish to the second. Place the fillets in the pan, one by one, skin side down and gently press down with your fingers in the centre of the fish for thirty seconds to ensure the middle of the fillet remains in contact with the pan.

Warm the potatoes through until the skins begin to slightly crisp then add the remaining garlic and plenty of salt and pepper. After the fish starts to turn from opaque to white and the skins are crisp and golden brown, around three to four minutes, turn over and finish flesh side down for a further two minutes. This process will depend on the size and thickness of your sea bass fillets and they may need a little longer.

Chop the fresh coriander and add to the salsa. Place hot, garlicky potatoes in a circle on a warm plate and fill the centre with salsa, the top with the cooked fish. Using a spoon decorate the edge of the plate with a little extra salsa including some of the liquor. For an extra special finish top with a deep fried prawn.

Optional

4 large King Prawns, peeled and de-veined

50 gr Plain Flour plus extra for dredging

A small bottle of cold Sparkling Water

Sea Salt and freshly cracked Black Pepper

2 pints of Vegetable Oil for Frying

Sieve the flour into a bowl and add a generous amount of salt and pepper. With a whisk, mixing continuously, add some sparkling to the flour until you have a smooth batter about the consistency of double cream. Place the batter in the fridge to rest for fifteen minutes. In a large, heavy-bottomed, pan heat the oil to 160°C / 320 F using a thermometer to check. If you do not have a thermometer have a few cubes of stale white bread to hand. Place a bread cube in the oil if it rises to the surface and cooks to a golden brown in a couple of minutes the oil is hot enough.

Take two teaspoons of flour and place in a shallow tray, season well. Dredge each prawn in the seasoned flour until covered. Shake off the excess flour and dip in the batter mix before carefully lowering into the hot oil. Fry the prawns for around four minutes or until the batter is crisp and golden, turning the prawns from time to time with a large slotted spoon. When the prawns are cooked remove using the spoon and drain on kitchen paper.

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