THE HOLIDAY IN THE MED ONE
Fish is for life, not just for holidays.
MENU TO SERVE 6 PEOPLE
PRAWN + DILL FRITTERS, AIOLI
SALT BAKED BASS, SAUCE CHIEN
BRAISED RUNNER BEANS, TARRAGON
CRÈME FRAICHE POTATOES
RASPBERRY AND COCONUT SEMIFREDDO
Before we start, I just wanted to let all my subscribers in the US/CA know that my cookbook Good Time Cooking will be published with you on 17th September, pre - order it here!!
Australia - it’s looking like January 2025, I will keep you posted!
Ok, lets crack on.
I have been wanting to do a whole fish on this newsletter since I started it. It’s just such a glorious way to feed people, dramatic and transportive. I always think of whole fish as a holiday food, something you only order at a beachside taverna on a Greek island, in an Italian port or a Spanish cove. The restaurants here have 3 main things in common that make it hard to replicate at home.
1. The fish is fresher than fresh.
2. They cook it all the time and are extremely confident in it.
3. Their kitchen is built for it.
Now here, in a UK home kitchen, the idea of cooking a whole fish can feel like a stretch. You probably (I assume) don’t have a josper grill or a wood fired oven. You probably don’t have the mobile number of your fave local fisherman who whatsapps you the morning’s catch. You probably can’t gut and scale a fish with your eyes closed (sorry, again I assume). But I am here to tell you that doesn’t matter. It’s possible to do a whole fish as perfectly as any restaurant, with the help of one of my favourite ingredients, Salt.
So, to celebrate this I’ve created a little menu all about holiday food. All the divine things that are reserved for trips, that can actually be done just as well by you, at your house. Sure, there is something special about sitting, freshly moisturised, in a breezy town square in Europe with a glass of wine shovelling crispy fish into your mouth, but in case you miss it too much, here’s how to do it at home.
Our crispy fish comes in the form of Prawn and Dill Fritters with Aioli. Utterly scrumptious, easy peasy and wonderfully summery. To me fried food is synonymous with holidays, but I really believe we should be treating ourselves more often to something crispy and great, especially when hosting.
Our whole fish is Sea Bass, baked in salt for perfectly juicy, tender and flavoursome flesh. Served with a Sauce Chien - a spicy green sauce from the French West Indies. It’s utterly joyous with the buttery bass, and is a great one for you to add to your summer sauce repertoire.
Alongside, beautifully cooked new potatoes tossed in heavenly, slightly sour crème fraiche sauce. And runner beans, braised to a soft khaki in white wine, butter and tarragon. Luscious and simple.
For pudding it’s one of my Dinner Party die-hards, a semifreddo. This one is a combination of two ice creams - toasted coconut and fresh raspberry. The coconut is sweet and fragrant, the raspberry sharp and fresh. Marbled together, this is an impressive and easy pudding that is perfect for summer entertaining.
PRAWN AND DILL FRITTERS, AIOLI
A holiday vibes menu would not be complete without some form of prawn. These fritters are Greek inspired but are served with a saffron aioli that’s very much on a French wavelength. They work beautifully together, the herbal freshness of the dill complimenting the warmth from the saffron. I don’t believe you have to make EVERY aioli from scratch when shop-bought mayonnaise is so excellent, but of course you can go the extra mile if you want to. For frying, a shallow non-stick pan is perfect, less scary and less mess.
Serves 6 as a snack
For the fritters
450g peeled and deveined king prawns, roughly chopped
20g fresh dill, finely chopped
1 tsp dried mint
2 spring onions, finely sliced
1 green chilli, finely chopped
50g plain flour
1 tsp baking powder
100g cornflour
1 egg white
120ml - 140ml cold sparkling water
1 tbsp flakey sea salt
500ml vegetable oil, for frying
Lemon wedges to serve
For the aioli
200g mayonnaise
1clove of garlic
Zest and juice of half lemon
Pinch of saffron
1 tbsp hot water
Combine the prawns, herbs and chilli together in a bowl and pop in the fridge until needed. To make the aioli, grind the saffron in a pestle and mortar and then add the hot water - this will help it dissolve better and release its fragrance. Mix this with the mayonnaise, garlic, lemon zest and juice and set aside until needed.
Heat the oil in a large, non-stick frying pan. It should be about 2 inches deep. You need it to reach 180 degrees.
In a bowl combine the flours, baking powder and salt. Whisk in the egg white and sparkling water to make a thin batter the consistency of double cream. Just before you start frying, combine this with the prawn mix, adding a splash more water if needed. The batter should only just cling to the prawn mix, rather than being thick, gloopy and pancakey. Fry tablespoons of the batter in the hot oil, turning a couple of times to make sure it gets evenly crisp. Transfer the cooked fritters to a rack to drain. I personally would cook these in batches, serving the freshly fried fritters to your guests before frying more, so that they get them at their hottest, crispiest best. Serve with the aioli and some wedges of lemon for dressing.
MAKE AHEAD -
You can make the aioli up to 3 days ahead.
The prawns and herbs can be prepped and combined and left in the fridge up to 6 hours before combining with the batter.
SUBSTITUTIONS -
Use coriander, parsley or tarragon instead of dill.
A combination of prawns and white crab meat would also work, or even brown shrimp too.
SALT BAKED BASS, SAUCE CHIEN
Using salt as a cocoon for cooking is an ancient method and incredibly effective. Salt insulates whatever it is you are cooking, keeping the temperature gentle and even. You can salt bake anything really, but I particularly love it for whole fish. It’s just incredibly dependable - your fish will always be lusciously juicy, tender and well seasoned. Speaking of which, in case you were worrying, a salt crust doesn’t make anything too salty, unless you accidentally eat some of the salt crust which I would try and avoid. Sauce Chien originates from the Antilles and is found all over the French West Indies. I read that it’s name comes from the fact that it is so delicious, it goes well with anything and is found everywhere, much like the many stray dogs found on the Islands.
Serves 6
For the salt crust
1.5kg rock salt
750g fine salt
Water to bind
For the fish
X 2 1kg fresh Sea Bass, gutted and scaled - ask your fishmonger. You may want to order these in advance to make sure they have them for you
1 large lemon, sliced
2 spring onions, roughly chopped
A large handful of fresh parsley
For the Sauce Chien
4 spring onions, washed and finely sliced
Large handful of fresh parsley, finely chopped
1 garlic clove, grated
1 scotch bonnet, deseeded and finely chopped (or use a red chilli if you prefer it milder)
90ml vegetable oil
2 tbsps hot water
The juice of 2 limes, the zest of 1
A tiny pinch of ground allspice
Salt to taste
Make the Sauce Chien by combining all of the ingredients together and seasoning to taste.
Preheat your oven to 210 fan.
To make the salt crust, combine the rock salt and fine salt together in a bowl. Add cold water bit by bit until the salt is the texture of wet sand and is starting to clump together when pressed. Take a large baking tray (or you can do each fish on a separate tray) and spread around ⅓ of the salt mix on the bottom, so that the layer is 1.5cm thick. Put the fish on top of the salt. Take the lemon slices and herbs and stuff them into the cavity of the fish - this will flavour the inside of the fish but also prevents the salt crust from getting in, which we want to avoid. Now, take the remaining salt mix and use it to cover both fish (leave the heads and tails uncovered), making sure that they are both well encased in a thick, even layer of salt. You can do this up to 1 hour before baking.
Put the fish into the middle of the hot oven and cook for 20 minutes. Use a skewer to poke the interior of the fish, it should be warm upon removal from the oven. Leave the fish in their salt crust for a further 20 minutes, think of this as the second part of the cook. The salt crust will hold the temperature from the oven and continue to gently cook the fish but will keep it juicy and moist.
I like to show the fish to my waiting guests in its crust as it looks so fabulous and dramatic. You can also crack into the crust in front of them, getting them involved if you like. Break open the salt crust to reveal the fish below. Use a butter knife to peel off the skin - it will be too salty to eat but can be removed easily. Use the same knife to gently ease the fish off the bone. You can choose to do this in front of your guests, serving the fish to them as it comes, or you can take it back into your kitchen and get it all on a plate before bringing it back, it’s up to you. The flesh will be easy to remove but you still may end up with some bones - don’t worry!!! Don’t forget to flip the fish over and get the fillets on the underside, too. Pop the cooked fish on a large plate and dress with some of the zingy Sauce Chien, serving it with the potatoes and beans.
MAKE AHEAD -
Sauce Chien is best made fresh on the day but can be done up to 6 hours ahead.
The fish is best crusted and baked fresh, although I did serve the leftovers of this the following day as a cold dish and it was absolutely lovely, too.
SUBSTITUTIONS -
All of these sauces would be lush here - Olive Salsa, Chimichurri, Sauce Vierge
CRÈME FRAICHE POTATOES
New potatoes are on my table all summer, typically, and these are wonderfully simple and delicious. I am a sucker for crème fraiche and it is amazing tossed through the warm potatoes with a bit of mustard, garlic and lemon. It’s not a particularly novel combination but it’s bloody good so who cares. It works particularly well with the fish in its bright and spicy Sauce Chien, tempering the heat.
Serves 6 as a side
1kg new potatoes, halved
300g crème fraiche
1 tbsp dijon mustard
1 clove garlic, grated
Zest of 1 lemon
Lots of salt and freshly cracked black pepper
A good grating of nutmeg
A small handful of chives, for the top
In a large pan, cover the potatoes with cold water and season it generously. Bring them to a boil, then simmer for 10 - 12 minutes gently. Use a skewer to test the potatoes, they should be almost cooked with a tiny bit of resistance. Turn the heat off, then leave the potatoes in the hot water for another 10 minutes. They will be perfectly cooked after this little rest. Drain them and toss them in a bowl with the crème fraiche, mustard, garlic, lemon zest, seasoning and nutmeg. Serve these hot, warm or cold.
MAKE AHEAD -
You can cook the potatoes up to 3 days ahead. You can mix them with the sauce up to 24 hours ahead, and reheat gently in a pan with a splash of water when needed.
SUBSTITUTIONS
Use wholegrain mustard or horseradish if you prefer.
These are lovely with cold roast beef, roast chicken or lamb.
BRAISED RUNNER BEANS WITH TARRAGON
It took a lot of unlearning for me to lean into “overcooking” vegetables. And in fact, part of that learning was to understand that they aren’t overcooked, they are properly cooked. By this I mean not stopping at bright emerald crispness and heading into the camo colours of khaki, sage and olive. Across Europe green vegetables are often served like this - soft, sweet and tenderly cooked, rather than blanched and firm. Runner beans are perfect for it, as they are a hardier green veg than most. Cooked slowly and simply in white wine and butter, these are deliciously deep in flavour, wonderfully easy and excellent all summer long. Use whichever herb you have, but I do love the anise warmth of tarragon here, especially with all the butter.
Serves 6 as a side
1kg runner beans, trimmed and cut into 3 inch pieces on the bias
80g butter
2 tbsps olive oil
2 shallots, finely diced
2 garlic cloves, sliced
300ml white wine
100ml water
15g tarragon, stalks and leaves separated
Salt and pepper to taste
Heat the oil and butter together in a large pan or casserole with a lid on a medium heat. Once the butter is sizzling, add the shallots and cook for 5 minutes or so until they are beginning to soften - don’t let them get any colour. Add the garlic and cook for another minute or so, then stir in the beans. Pour in the wine and water and add a few tarragon stalks too. Season very generously - this can take a lot of salt, and bring to a simmer. Pop the lid on and cook for 40 minutes on a low heat, stirring gently every so often. Remove the lid for the last 10 minutes to reduce the sauce a bit. The beans will be a deep olive green and will have soaked up that delicious winey liquor. Serve hot or warm with the remaining tarragon leaves roughly chopped on top and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.
MAKE AHEAD -
The beans will be just as wonderful made 24 hours ahead and reheated, be prepared for them to be even browner, though.
SUBSTITUTIONS -
Add a few diced ripe tomatoes with the garlic, and some parmesan on top to finish to make this a main course with bread.
RASPBERRY AND COCONUT SEMIFREDDO
Up there with one of the campest puddings I’ve ever made, this is a summer joy. Raspberries and coconut are spectacular together, and raspberries are conveniently coming into season too. You do have to make 2 separate mixes for this, which are then marbled together, but that’s fine because you can do it the day before your guests arrive, leaving only the job of turning it out and slicing it for when they get there. I like this in a loaf tin, but it would work in an 8 inch cake tin or brownie tin, too.
Serves 8
This recipe uses 1 x 397g tin of condensed milk - half in the raspberry and half in the coconut. But because 397g is such an annoying quantity to split, allow me to put 200ml for each recipe.
For the coconut mix
200ml condensed milk
X1 400ml tin coconut milk
40g coconut flakes, toasted, plus an extra 20g toasted for the top
A pinch of flakey sea salt
250ml double cream
For the raspberry mix
200g fresh raspberries
Half a lemon zest
40g runny honey
200ml (½ a tin) condensed milk
350ml double cream
Preheat the oven to 160 fan. Line a 900g loaf tin with a big piece clingfilm so there is plenty of overhang - I find this easiest if the tin is slightly damp.
Put the 60g of coconut flakes on an oven tray and bake for around 4 - 5 minutes until golden and fragrant. Set aside 20g for the top.
In a saucepan, combine the remaining 40g toasted coconut, the coconut milk and the condensed milk. Pop this on a medium heat and let it come to a simmer. Cook the mix at a gentle but constant simmer for 10 minutes, stirring often, until it has thickened slightly and become rich and glossy. The flaked toasted coconut will give it the most delicious flavour. Drain the mix through a fine sieve to remove the coconut flakes and then leave to cool completely. You can do this by chilling in the fridge for an hour, or if you are short of time put the mix into a bowl in a larger bowl of iced water. Keep stirring the mix every so often, it will cool and thicken in about 15 minutes.
Whip the 250ml of double cream to soft peaks, then fold through the cooled coconut mix. Set aside. This mix won’t be as stiff as the raspberry cream when it is finished, that is fine.
For the raspberry mix, blitz the raspberries, lemon zest and honey in a blender until smooth. Pour the sauce through a fine sieve to get rid of all the seeds. Whip the 350g of double cream together with the condensed milk to soft peaks. Fold through the raspberry sauce to make a luscious baby pink cream.
Put a couple of big spoons of the raspberry cream down the length of the tin, then spoon the coconut mix on top. Continue layering spoonfuls of raspberry and coconut until you have used them, all up. Use a skewer to make a few little swirls down the middle of the tin - literally only 3 or 4, we still want to see definition between the two ice creams. Fold over the clingfilm to cover the top and pop into the freezer for a minimum of 8 hours.
Take the semifreddo out of the freezer about 15 - 20 minutes or so before you wish to serve it. Unfold the clingfilm from the top of the tin, exposing the ice cream, then invert onto a large board or plate. Remove the tin and clingfilm. Decorate the top of the semifreddo with the remaining toasted coconut and serve in slices. You can serve with fresh raspberries too, if you would like.
MAKE AHEAD -
You can make the semifreddo up to 1 month in advance.
SUBSTITUTIONS -
A mango, strawberry or blackberry ice cream would be lovely in the centre instead of raspberry.
TIMEPLAN
This first plan should help you see what you can get done in advance, so that for each course on the day you have at least 1, maybe 2 major parts of it taken care of. I appreciate that not everyone’s weeks are easily peppered with dinner party prep, but if you’re hosting after work or on a day where you can’t be in the kitchen, getting ahead is going to save your arse.
MISE-EN-PLACE
This is the fancy name we give to the food prep each section in the restaurant needs to do for their dishes. Hopefully breaking down each dish like this will help you feel organised.
Use the hour before your guests arrive to organise your space too- I find it helpful to group ingredients by dish so it is all in the same place. Little ramekins are really useful for this.
STYLING
Much like a meal in the med, this dinner doesn’t need a huge amount of help. I like the simple, paired back plating of family-run restaurants. Essentials are - a big metal tray for your fish to sit proudly on, lots of pretty blue/green plates for that seaside feel and that’s about it. Peonies are in season and are looking so wondrous, especially in vintage aperitif bottles like you might find in a bouchon in France.
If you end up serving the fish off the bone at the table, having a large fish platter is quite a nice touch. Here are a few I have found that I love!
From left to right - Glasette, Etsy, Etsy
