The Food Diaries

Seared tuna with cucumber bites

Peel a medium-sized cucumber and cut into very thick slices. Scoop out the centre of each piece with a melon baller making sure not to cut all the way through. Set aside.

Mix together 125ml Greek yogurt with 1 small garlic clove, crushed, some finely chopped mint (a dozen leaves), a good squeeze of lemon juice and a drizzle of olive oil. Season with sea salt. Adjust the seasoning to taste and set aside.

On a large plate sprinkle on 1/4 cup za’atar and 2 tbs sumac. Cut a 500g loin of tuna into large chunks and dredge on all sides with the spice mixture.

Heat a large pan with a drizzle of rapeseed/canola oil. Quickly sear the tuna on all sides, and immediately remove to a platter (the meat should still be quite raw inside).

Divide the tuna between four plates, add a few slices of cucumber (hollow side up), fill with the yogurt mixture and sprinkle with nigella seeds. Drizzle a little olive oil all around before serving.

Serves 4 as a starter.

Rosy gravadlax

Take a small side of salmon (500g), skin on and lay in a deep dish. Sprinkle with 100g rock salt and 40g brown sugar. Then add on top (in this order) 30g grated horseradish, 200g raw beetroot, peeled and coarsely grated, a sprinkling of vodka or schnapps (40ml), a large bunch of dill and the grated peel of 1 lemon. 

Pat everything down gently, cover/seal with two layers of cling film and place in the refrigerator with a couple of heavy tins on top for 48 hours.

Unwrap the salmon, discard the beetroot mixture and drain the collected liquid. Pat dry with some kitchen paper and place on a cutting board skin side down. Slide a sharp knife just above the skin and slide through to cut and remove the salmon skin. Cut thin slices on an angle and place on a serving dish.

Serve with a dill sauce (combine 200ml soured cream with 2 tsp wholegrain mustard, the zest and juice of 1/2 a lemon and a small handful of finely chopped dill).

Serves 4-6 as a starter.

Note: The salmon will keep for up to 2 weeks in the refrigerator (unsliced)

Yellow monkfish curry with green beans

Pan fry 1 tsp white peppercorns, 1 tsp corainder seeds, and 1 tsp cumin seeds for 1 minute, or until lightly toasted. Place in a food processor along with 1 tsp sea salt, 1 tsp ground turmeric, 1 tsp curry powder, 1 tsp chilli flakes, 1 tbs chopped fresh/frozen kaffir lime leaves, 1 lemon grass stalk, roughly chopped, 1 yellow pepper, deseeded and roughly chopped, 1 large shallot, roughly chopped, 5 garlic cloves, 3cm piece fresh ginger, chopped and 2 tbs rapeseed oil. Pulse to a paste.

Place 4 tbs of the paste (freeze the rest) into a large pan along with 1 tbs rapeseed oil. and cook for 2 minutes till fragrant. Add 400ml coconut milk, 250ml chicken stock and 500g chopped fine beans and simmer for 10 minutes, or till the beans still retain their crunch. 

Add 2 tbs unrefined sugar, 3 tbs fish sauce, the zest and juice of 1 lime and 850g cubed monkfish fillet (or other firm white fish). Simmer for another 5 minutes till the fish is cooked through. Serve with basmati rice. 

Serves 6.

Tuna mini-burgers with a wasabi-yuzu mayonnaise

Very finely mince 250g fresh tuna. Place in a small bowl with a drizzle of soy sauce. Mix well and then roll into 6 balls and then flatten into burger shapes. Fry or grill for around 2 minutes on each side.

Meanwhile, mix together 3 tbs good-quality mayonnaise with 2 tsp soy sauce, 2 tsp yuzu juice (a Japanese citrus fruit), 2 tsp mirin, 1 tsp wasabi powder and 1 tbs ketchup.

Serve the burgers in mini-buns with a dollop of mayonnaise and a side salad of lamb’s lettuce with a Japanese sesame dressing.

Serves 2.

Chirashi salmon with a mixed green salad and yuzu dressing

Cook 1 cup of brown (or white) sushi rice with 2 cups of water as per your favourite rice cooking method (I use a rice cooker). Note that if you use white rice then you will need to rinse it well in cold water first to remove some of the starch. Meanwhile, in a small bowl mix together 40ml rice vinegar, 20ml sugar and 1tsp salt till well dissolved. Once the rice is cooked mix in the vinegar till the rice becomes glossy. Divide between two serving bowls.

Take two salmon fillets and cut into small cubes. Place in the centre of the rice and sprinkle with a little nanami togarashi (a Japanese chili/mandarin peel powder). In a separate bowl place 1tbs yuzu juice (a Japanese citrus fruit), 1/2 tsp wasabi powder, 1tbs mirin, 1tbs grapeseed oil and 1tbs shoyu. Mix well with some mixed salad greens (watercress, wild rocket, baby spinach). Place around the salmon. 

Serves 2.

Roasted sea bass with chive oil

Place 1/4 cup coarsely chopped chives in a food processor along with 1/3 cup olive oil and some sea salt and pepper. Process until smooth and strain through a fine sieve. Set aside.

Place 4 sea bass fillets (150-250g each) in a roasting pan drizzled with olive oil. Drizzle more oil over the fillets and season with sea salt and pepper. Place in a hot oven (200c) and cook for around 9 minutes, till the fish is just barely cooked through. You may need to adjust the time depending on the thickness of the fillets.

Transfer the sea bass to serving plates and sprinkle with the chive oil. You can warm the oil slightly before serving.

Serve with some boiled new potatoes.

Serves 4.

Samphire, roasted cod and ratatouille

Samphire is not actually a seaweed but a succulent which grows in tidal zones (estuaries, creeks, etc). It has a nice crunch to it, with a slightly salty flavour and provides a bright vegetable addition to the dinner plate. It can be foraged, but it’s recently become quite trendy so is much more easily available at the fish counter. It goes very well with fish.

This recipe serves 2.

Take a large handful of washed and trimmed samphire and snap into 2-3 cm pieces. Place a knob of butter in a pan (or substitute with olive oil) and stir fry the samphire for around 2-4 minutes, until the samphire starts to soften nicely. Season with sea salt and pepper, add a squeeze of lemon juice.

Serve with a couple of nice pieces of grilled cod on top of the samphire with a garnish of ratatouille on top. You’ll find the recipe for the ratatouille here. A wedge of lemon wouldn’t go amiss either.

Warm new potato salad with smoked eel and creamed horseradish

This salad presents a perfect pairing of buttery yellow new potatoes and rich and delicate smoked eel, bound together by a creamy yet bright and sharp dressing.

Bring some new potatoes (300g) to a boil and cook till done (once they are easily pierced with a fork). Keep warm till you are ready to assemble the salad. In the meantime, in a small bowl mix together 1 tbs creamed horseradish, 1 tbs light creme fraiche, 2 tsp white vinegar, 1 tbs olive oil, 1tbs each finely chopped chives and parsley, and some sea salt and pepper. Slice up the new potatoes and place in a serving bowl. Fold in the salad dressing. Drape the potatoes with bite-sized pieces of smoked eel (130g) and then sprinkle generously with salad cress.

Serves 3 as a starter or 2 as light lunch.

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Grilled Salmon with a sweet miso marinade served with roasted chantenay carrots

In a small bowl whisk together 3 tbs miso paste, 2 tbs mirin, 1 tbs sugar, and 1 tbs sake. Spread over 2 salmon fillets (around 100g). Marinate between 30 minutes and overnight. Remove the salmon from the marinade and place on an oiled or non-stick baking tray, skin side down (skinless fillets are fine too). Bake in the oven at 200c for about 12-15 minutes, till the salmon just cooked through. Add a final brush of marinade to gloss up the salmon and serve with some roasted chantenay carrots (baked in the oven at 200c till lightly golden with a drizzle of olive oil, honey and thyme).

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Seared swordfish with sushi rice and spicy Japanese dipping sauce

This recipe works best when the swordfish is super fresh (look out for shiny, slightly pink and almost translucent steaks).

Start by the preparing the rice: take 1 cup brown sushi rice and place in a pot with 2 cups water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for about 12 minutes. Switch off the heat and let the rice rest till all the water has been absorbed. In a bowl mix together 2 tbs rice vinegar with 1 tsp salt and 1 tsp sugar till dissolved. Transfer the rice to a bowl and stir in the rice vinegar using a flat spatula. Cover and set aside.

To make the sauce: in a small bowl mix together 2 tbs mayonnaise, 1 tsp ketchup, 1 tsp mirin, 2 tsp soy sauce, and 1/2 tsp wasabi powder (or prepared wasabi will do).

Heat 1 tsp rapeseed oil in a pan till quite hot, sprinkle black and white sesame seeds on both sides of 2 swordfish fillets. Sear the swordfish for about 1-2 minutes per side (depending on how rare you like your fish). Transfer to a cutting board and cut into slices across the grain. 

To serve: divide the rice between two bowls, place the swordfish slices overtop and add a large dollop of sauce on the side. Serve 2.

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The Breakfast Club: Kedgeree with a poached egg on top

In a pot place 1 cup brown basmati rice with 2 cups water, bring to a boil and then simmer, covered. Meanwhile, place a 250g fillet of smoked haddock in a pan and just cover with water. Bring to a boil, then simmer for 5 minutes. Remove the fish from the pan (retain the water for later), remove the skin, and flake. Slowly fry 1 large shallot (or small onion) in a little butter till softened. Add 1/4 tsp turmeric and 1/2 tbs curry powder. Stir around briefly and remove from heat. Poach 2-3 eggs(this recipe serves 2-3, so count 1 egg per person). I love these poach pods.

Now add the fish, the shallot, 1/2 cup frozen peas, and the juice of 1 lemon to the rice. You can moisten the mixture with the cooking water from the fish to loosen the rice (it should be quite unctious), and finish with 1 tbs cream and a seasoning of sea salt and pepper.

Serve with the poached egg on top.

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