Fresh from the Sea

What can be better than having freshly caught snapper for dinner! We live close to the sea, near Eastern Beach, and from our bedroom we can see the boaties all heading out to sea.

At the start of the day in summer, the boaties are up before the birds, and heading down to Half Moon Bay Marina to beat everyone else who has the same idea. At 6am the Half Moon Bay boat ramp is like rushhour in Auckland’s spahetti junction! But once on the water, Auckland’s Waitemata is a boaties’ paradise. While I don’t get the opportunity to go on the water often, myself, when I do I just love it, and it usually with one of my younger brother’s. My brother is the best fisherman I know. When we are out on the boat, if we are not catching fish, we are either baiting up, reeling in line with lost bait, or moving on to the next location. Even on a bad day we catch a few!

On Sunday, my brother had another successful fishing trip, and had lots of fish to share with the family. I ended up with a whole kilo of snapper!

Fish is so easy to cook, and the perfect family meal. I have 2 different recipes to share with you.  While the recipes are a little similar, the second recipe has a little more zing and will be a hit for those that love coriander.

FRESH SNAPPER WITH HERBS AND LEMON

500g fresh snapper fillets

1/3 cup panko breadcrumbs

1/3 cup olive oil

30 ml lemon juice

2 tsp finely grated lemon rind

1 tbsp chopped fresh herbs

1 clove garlic, crushed

1/2 tsp sea salt

Coat both sides of the fish in panko breadcrumbs and set aside. Combine olive oil, lemon juice, lemon rind, herbs, garlic and sea salt in a bowl.  Heat half the oil mixture in a large frying pan, and add the fish. Cook the fish on a medium high heat for 3 -4 minutes each side.

Drizzle the remaining oil mixtue over the cooked fish and serve with vegetables or salad.

 

FRESH SNAPPER WITH CHERMOULLA

500g fresh snapper fillets

Chermoulla

1 – 2 cloves garlic, crushed

1/2 tsp ground cumin

1/4 tsp hot paprika

1 tbsp fresh coriander, chopped

1 tbsp fresh flat leaf parsley, chopped

30 ml olive oil

30 ml lemon juice

1 tsp finely grated lemon rind

Combine chermoulla ingredients in a bowl.  Pour half the chermoulla mixture over fish fillets.

Cook fish on a medium high heat in a frying pan for 3 – 4 minutes each side. Drizzle remainder of chermoulla over cooked fish.  Sprinkle with additional coriander leaves, if desired, and serve with salad or vegetables.

What could be simpler. Fresh fish, lemon and herbs, all combining to give great flavour!

Note: Cooking times for fish are dependent on size of fish fillet!