Braised pollock

I am a big fan of fish, pollock in particular. Mostly because this type of fish was often served by my Mum when my hungry brother, sister and I got home from school. She always kept extra pieces frozen for emergencies, but most of all she knew that thanks to its white, chunky yet delicate flesh, Pollock was a lighter and healthier alternative to meat. To cut a long story short; Mamunia (our affectionate petname for our Mum) is a master in one particular fish-based meal; Greek style fish. Although the origins of this meal has nothing to do with Greece, its named that way in my home country and usually served for celebratory occasions. Not in our house. It was the ideal meal when she had limited time and wanted to make something easy for the whole family. My version is slightly updated with ingredients such as capers and lemon zest. As a result you’ll get a traditional meal with modern twist. I served it to Mamunia once with mixed feelings whether she’ll like it…or not. And let me tell you, there’s no bigger pleasure when your Mum is asking for an extra portion of what you’ve cooked!

Ingredients:
3 peeled carrots
1 medium peeled parsnip,
1 medium leek
1 large onion (Spanish is best)
1 unwaxed lemon, few bay leaves
2 tbsp of marinated capers, 4 allspice corns
bunch of lemon thyme, salt, pepper
1 bottle (700ml) of tomato passata

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Pollock fillet seasoned with capers, thyme, lemon zest and pepper.

Season the fillets and place them on a baking tray. Add capers, thyme and lemon zest.
Bake in the oven  for 10-15 mins at 180C

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In the meantime chop onion and leek and stir in a lightly oiled heavy bottomed pan with allspice and bay leaves over a low heat. Then add grated carrot, grated parsnip and sweat until veggies are tender. When it’s time, pour the passata into vegetables and cook thoroughly. Place everything in an oven proof dish with baked fish and leave in the warm oven for another 10 mins.

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Version with poached egg and chopped parsley-my favourite!

 

Spontaneous Sea Bream

This dish is another example of a quick but lip-smacking idea for an afterwork dinner. It’s easy to pepare. Each of the ingredients takes the same amount of time to cook, so there’s no worry that something will get cold whilst preparing the others.

The way I prepare it:
season filet of fish (sea bream in this case) with white pepper and miso soup topping (they soften into the flesh adding an amazing flavour)
Simmer white buckwheat in medium size pot with salted water for 15 minutes, whilst sauting asparagus slowly with butter in a non sticky pan.

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sauteéd asparagus
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dinner is ready. #yum
 cooked buckwheat
cooked and seasoned buckwheat ready to serve

Few suggestions:
– Bake the fish wrapped in aluminium foil at temperature of 180C.
It will keep the fish moist and prevent from drying.
Put the wrapped fish in the oven when you begin to simmer the buckwheat for perfect timing.
– Sauteé asparagus on the medium heat with good butter, they soften beautifully and prevent butter from burning out.
– Simmer the buckwheat in salted water rather than seasoning afterwards and leave to rest for a few minutes before serving.