Baked Fish with Lemon Cream Sauce

Mr P. and I don't eat much meat these days (a throwback to our youthful vego. days perhaps), but we do like a bit of fish.  In fact, we had salmon just the other night, but we don't let that stop us from having fish again :=)  So this time, we went for some good old Aussie barramundi (tho' thinking on it, it was possibly from Vietnam or Thailand).  Though you have to be careful, as some naughty restaurants and seafood mongers like to trick us with cheaper fish.

Oh yes, here we have another recipe from Nagi Maehashi's Dinner.  Good old Nagi!  She never lets us down, with her fabulous recipes.  Sadly her gorgeous pup Dozer died recently (at a ripe old age).  I wonder if she will get another beautiful boy soon?  I keep threatening to get another pup, but Mr P. is not keen.  Two of our pups are buried in the backyard (maybe a tad illegal? Nah, I've checked; go ahead!), just as several of our pets are buried at our previous house.  I wonder if the new owners ever dug them up by mistake? :=)  

lemony, fishy and creamy!

Serves 4:

ingredients:

4 x 180g./6.5 oz skinless white fish fillets (about 1.5 cm thick)

1/2 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

1.5 Tbs very finely minced/chopped French shallots/eschalots

Lemon Cream Sauce:

50g./1.8 oz butter

60 mL (1/4 cup) thickened cream

1 garlic clove, finely chopped

1 Tbs mustard (Dijon or your fave - I love my homemade wholegrain)

1.5 Tbs lemon juice

1/4 tsp sea salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

To serve:

2 tsp parsley, chopped  (seems stingy; maybe you need more - hehehe)

some chives, finely chopped - 1 tsp? - or more if you please

lemon slices

Mashed potato, and some green leaves if you want to feel virtuous

ingredients gathered (ignore the coriander seeds jar)

yep a bit of mustard does the trick!

Method:

On goes your oven to 200C/400F to heat up

Now onto the lemon cream sauce:

Put all the saucy ingredients into a heatproof jug or bowl, so you can microwave for 2 x 30 second bursts (give it a stir after the first 30 seconds!) - you want it wonderfully smooth and combined

And now for the fish: which is going into a baking dish (Nagi says 30 x 20 cm/12 x 8 in)

Season both sides of the fish pieces, and place them in the baking dish, with a bit of space between them

Cast the French shallots over the fish, and pour the sauce over

Bake for 10-12 minutes, or till the flesh flakes easily

Place the fish fillets on serving plates, and give 'em a five minute rest

When the 5 minutes are up, spoon the sauce (that's still lurking in the baking dish) over the fish, sprinkle with the parsley and chives, and serve with lemon slices, mashed potato and some green leaves tossed with a bit of oil and lemon juice (or your fave dressing)

love me some chives :)

lemon cream sauce, heading for the microwave

Notes:

Nagi says to use thick, white fish fillets; I bet you could even use crocodile!  I do love a bit of gummy shark (flake) myself, though not so easy to get in sunny Queensland.  Happily, the GoodFish Sustainable Seafood Guide says they are not endangered which is a good thing (not sure about crocodiles tho!)

fish into the dish, then the shallots and sauce over

chop your parsley in a jug with scissors - so easy!

throw on your lemon slices

and now throw on the parsley!

is that Hagrid overlooking my dinner? :=)

Bill Granger's Baked Chicken with Lemon, Potato and Green Olives

Wow!  I made this dish in February 2024!  Crikey, how time flies.  This is a dish from Bill Granger, well-known and beloved Aussie cook who died way too young on Christmas Day 2023.  We ate at his Bondi restaurant several times over the years, on our trips down south.  And we always had a good feed there :=)  His scrambled eggs were legendary - nearly equal parts eggs to cream!  (I posted my version of his eggs in Feb 2024, too!)  Must have been a good month :=)

Have just been to the Japanese shop again!  Mmm, did I buy a few too many Pocky sticks, and matcha biscuits?  Well, maybe.  And they've opened a Japanese deli next door, and there'll be a cafe as well soon.  And of course, can't forget the Asian shop nearby - with even more delights!  My pantry is groaning.  I remember Mr P.'s SIL diving into our pantry one day, and being dragged out by her hubby.  She thought it was full of fascinating stuff - and how right she was - hehehe :=)

    

how good does this look?  Yep, heaps good!

Serves 4:

ingredients:

1kg/2.2lb potatoes like Desiree (a good roasting tater, as Samwise Gamgee would say)

1 red onion, cut into big chunks or wedges (peeled of course, silly!)

75g./2.6 oz green olives

1 lemon, sliced

50g./1.8 oz pancetta, or bacon, or capers or caperberries, or all of 'em

2 dried or fresh bay leaves  -  I used 6!

1 Tbs tomato paste

1 Tbs balsamic vinegar  (but use whatever you have; I used cranberry balsamic)

120mL/4 oz chicken stock  (pour it into a jug for easy stirring)

1.2kg/2.6lb chicken thighs (I used skinless, and boneless)  see Notes

1 Tbs EV olive oil

sea salt flakes

freshly ground black pepper, to taste - maybe 10-12 grinds?

1/2-1 tsp chilli flakes  (optional)

yep, it's taters!

and a lemon

Method:

Whack on your oven to 180C/350F to heat up

Chop the taters (potatoes) into chunks (you choose the size), and tip them into a roasting pan (I like to line my baking dish with baking paper = easy cleaning)

Then chuck the onion chunks, olives, lemon slices, pancetta and bay leaves over the potato pieces

Now comes the tomato paste and vinegar - which you stir into your jug of chicken stock - give it a good mix!

And pour this mixture over your veg. in the tray/pan

Your chicken pieces go on top of the veg. and the stock in the pan

Then drizzle the EVoo over it all, and season with salt, pepper (and chilli flakes if using)

Shove the dish into the oven, and bake for 50 minutes

Now take it out of the oven, remove the chicken pieces, and crank up your oven to 220C/430F

Place the dish back into the oven with the veg. mix, and bake for a further 10-15 minutes till the veg. looks well-coloured and delicious

The chicken goes back into the pan, on top of the veg., for serving  (Bill says to take out the bay leaves first ... hehehe)

red onion, natch!

you know what these are, my friends :=)

Notes:

Bill says to use a 1.7kg/3.7 lb chicken, jointed - but why not buy 'em in pieces already, I say? :=)  And I cut 'em up into 3 or 4 pieces

I'd suggest throwing in a few whole cloves of garlic too!

ingredients gathered 

veg. in the baking dish

on go the chicken pieces

out comes the cooked chook

and back go the veg.

and done!

eat up!

delicious!

juicy, salty - yum!

green olives

Fragrant Coconut Chicken

Regular readers know I am a huge fan of Belinda Jeffery's cookbooks, and of her own lovely self.  I've done several cooking classes with her, before she moved to the Central Coast.  Some readers may remember that I sliced into my finger at one of her classes and swooned like a young lady from Pride and Prejudice (or Bridgerton?).  I had to go lie down and recover my senses.

I made her Fragrant Coconut Chicken one night 'cos it's easy and delicious, especially if you use chicken thighs rather than a whole chook!  I have to watch myself when it comes to cutting up a whole bird.  I fear my fingers would not survive - hehehehe.

splosh on some yoghurt and mango chutney ...

Start this recipe the day before (or at least early in the morning) you want to eat it!  It needs to sit and ruminate in the fridge for at least 6 hours but overnight is better (says Belinda using a whole bird).

Serves 4:  

ingredients:

1.5 kg/3.3 lb skinless, boneless chicken thighs (or cut of your choice - wings, drumsticks, etc or a mixture) Or a whole bird if you feel like dismembering it!

Marinade:

1 small onion, roughly chopped

4 cloves of garlic, roughly chopped

2 Tbs fresh ginger, chopped or grated

2 Tbs Korma curry paste - you choose your fave   see Notes 

1 dessertspoon of tamarind paste = 2 tsp (optional)

250 mL/9 oz/1 cup coconut cream or coconut milk

1-2 small red chillies, finely chopped

2 tsp ground cummin seeds

2 Tbs lime or lemon juice

1 tsp sea salt flakes

Garnish:

freshly torn or chopped herbs (coriander leaves for instance)

lime wedges

Plain Greek yoghurt, for serving

Chutney, for serving (optional)

Method:

Chop your thighs into bitesize pieces and place them into a large food-safe plastic bag

Gather the marinade ingredients and bung 'em into a food processor or blender, and whizz the heck out of them

Once you have a lovely, thick purée, you pour the mixture into the bag with the chicken and give it a good shake and squeeze (make sure the bag is very well sealed first)

Stick the bag into a container, and let it sit in the fridge for as long as you can be bothered to wait, giving it a gentle toss every so often

Take the bag out, and let it come to room temp. (unless your room is sizzling hot or freezing cold)

Your oven goes on to 190C/375F to heat up, while you grab a large baking dish, and spread 1-2 Tbs of EV olive oil over the base

Tip the marinated chicken pieces into the dish, spread them out, cover the dish with alfoil, and bake for 25 minutes

Then take off the foil, and give it another 20 minutes

Take it out of the oven, and let it sit for a few minutes

And serve with the herbs, lime wedges, yoghurt and chutney

Steamed rice could be a goer here too

Notes:

I am giving Belinda's recipe in full, though I halved it for myself and Mr P.  (I used 850g. of thighs - ok so a wee bit more than half)

Belinda suggests Tikka Masala paste though I used Korma - a fabulous fresh paste from Tasmania (those supermarket ones are disgusting!!)

chop up your thighs

pour in the marinade and give it a big shake

spread your thighs and cover with alfoil

smells delicious, my friends!

throw on some herbs

and eat with yoghurt and chutney

(Joining up with Min for her #WWWhimsy linkup on her blog Write of the Middle)

c. Sherry M.

Skinklada aka Swedish Baked Omelette

Don't you just love the name of this dish?  One of the small native lizards here in Australia is the Eastern Water skink, which is what this dish brings to mind.  Just because of the name, not the flavour or look of it, you understand.  Though then again, I've never tried a skink omelette ...  I have eaten wallaby sausage though, and a kangaroo burger.  

This recipe is also from the book Tried Tested and True by Liz Harfull.  Apparently, it's a very traditional, Swedish baked omelette.  This recipe was brought back to Australia by Mary Lindqvist, who was briefly married to the Swedish Vice Consul in Egypt in 1934.  Sadly, he died 18 months after the wedding.  

So Mary came home with a few recipes, including this one.  Mary tells us that the Swedes "must have special stomachs, honed by centuries of training," as she faced gargantuan meals in Sweden.  Happily, this dish is light and full of delicious protein; great for lunch or a light supper. 

just add salad and relish

Serves 2:

ingredients:

100g./3.5 oz ham, bacon or hot-smoked salmon or trout, diced - see Notes

a big handful of herbs, chopped - I used parsley and chives

some dried chilli flakes if you like - I did!

4 large eggs

500mL/17 oz milk

sea salt and ground black pepper, to taste

Method:

On goes the oven to 180C/355F

Butter your 25cm./9 inch pie dish liberally

Cast the protein of your choice over the base of the pie dish

Then scatter over the herbs and chilli flakes

Grab a medium bowl, whisk the eggs and milk together and add the salt and pepper

Pour the egg mixture gently over the fish (or meat), and bake for 25 minutes or till set

Serve with a lovely green salad, and a spicy tomato or capsicum relish

Notes:

I doubled the recipe as the one in the book is for 1 person

Liz suggests using a  23cm. pie tin and baking for 30 minutes; I only have 25cm. tins so it took a little less time to bake

Use mushrooms or another vegetable to make this vegetarian, or maybe just some grated vintage cheddar

Mary apparently suggested using smoked salmon or anchovies for this dish!  Anchovies ... mmm, maybe

little fishies

ingredients gathered

scatter herbs and chilli over the fish

pour over the eggy mixture

and bake at 180C for about 25 minutes

Mysteriously, this photo has a different pie tin?!  I can't remember why; I guess I made two of them ...

delicious with a salad for dinner

and here's a tea towel with the recipe,
which you can buy on Etsy :=)

c. Sherry M.

Burmese Chicken, Cardamom, Lemon and Coconut Curry

We are definitely curry fans in this house.  And I am a big fan of Belinda Jeffery and her really useful, well-written cookbooks, as you know.  This recipe is from her latest - In Belinda's Kitchen.  I know I've said it before: Belinda is a lovely lady, and her recipes are easy to make, and always turn out well.

Speaking of curry, some years ago in our crazy youth, Mr P. and I cooked up a few vats of various types of curry and transported them to a big park in the CBD - at night, laid out on the rotunda, inviting lots of friends.  I think we called it Curry in a Hurry, or maybe just Curry in the Park.  (Sadly, a young student was murdered in this park some years later.)  

We made rice, and raita, and our version of a sweet, pineapple and coconut yoghurt which we called Soul of Tropic (heaven knows why).  Probably lucky we weren't arrested as the Police Headquarters is right near by, and we were rowdy as heck.  I still can't picture how we got all that hot curry to the park.  Ah, our foolish youth :=)   

chicken (and potato) curry dinner - always a hit

Serves 6-8:

ingredients:

60 mL/2 big oz of a neutral oil

2 onions (brown or red), finely sliced

6 massive cloves of garlic, finely chopped

1/4 cup fresh ginger, finely chopped  - see Notes

2-4 small red chillies, finely chopped - or blitz the ginger and chillies together in your small food processor, like I did :=)  And the garlic!

6 cardamom pods or 1/2 tsp cardamom seeds - see Notes 

2 tsp ground turmeric

1.25 Tbs sweet paprika

3 tsp Thai red curry paste

1 lemon

140 mL/5 oz coconut cream or coconut milk (low-fat is fine)

400g./14 oz tin of diced tomatoes (or just chop up a tin of regular tomatoes, in the tin with a pair of scissors)

1 tsp sea salt flakes

8-10 large chicken thighs, skin on if you fancy (I didn't), cut into large chunks - say, each thigh into 3 or 4

2-3 large potatoes, cut into chunks (no need to peel) - optional

To serve:

Mint, parsley or coriander leaves, chopped or torn

lime wedges

jasmine rice, steamed or boiled

mango chutney

cucumber, diced and mixed with yoghurt and mint

Method:

Grab a large frying pan, and heat up the oil over a low heat

Add the onion, garlic, ginger and chilli to the pan, and cook for about 20 minutes till soft and golden - give it a stir every so often

On goes your oven to 180C/360F to heat up, while you crush the cardamom pods and smash the seeds a bit if you're going that way

If using ground cardamom and seeds from a jar, just chuck 'em into the onion mixture with the turmeric, paprika and curry paste

Give it all a stir, and cook for a couple of minutes, then turn off the heat

Now peel the lemon (without the pith), chop into small chunks and discard any seeds

Into the pan go the lemon chunks, coconut cream, tomatoes and salt; stir in well then turn off the heat

Now put the chicken thigh pieces and potato chunks into a large roasting tin, throw the spicy, onion-y mixture over everything, and give it all a really good mix with your gloved hands (or a big spoon)

Whack the tin into your now-hot oven, and bake for about 1.25 to 1.5 hours, turning the chicken half-way thru if using thighs with skin on; otherwise just let it rip

Belinda says that if you have a lot of oil on top of the dish once it's cooked, just grab a paper towel and soak it up to get rid of it

Serve with the accompaniments

Notes:

Don't worry too much about measuring the amount of ginger; just chuck in however much you like

I started pounding away at my cardamom pods, then gave it up as a bad job and shoved in some ground cardamom with the seeds I had managed to recover from the pods  (You can buy cardamom seeds, or ground cardamom seeds in a small jar apparently)

Belinda didn't say what to do with the lemon zest, so I decided to freeze it for another time; maybe another curry?

ingredients gathered

zap your aromates

start cooking off the aromatics

peel and chop the lemon (throw the zest into the freezer for later use)

add the other ingredients and stir them in well

smoosh the paste all over the chicken and potatoes

smells delicious!

throw on some parsley

c. Sherry M.