Fishy!

Two lovely, fresh, plump Snapper called for a bit of inspiration from Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall and his River Cottage.

I was so delighted with my bargain purchase from my "best kept secret source in Bentleigh", (shhh!), I forgot to ask the fishmonger to gut and de-scale. Hate that! Can only be done wearing surgical gloves.

Roasted Slashed Fish with Aromatic Paste

It goes like this. 6 easy steps.

1. Crush one whole star anise in a pestle & mortar.

2. Combine with grated ginger, garlic, chopped red chili and a small onion.

3. Add enough soy sauce to make a thick paste.

4. Make 3 slashes through the flesh of the fish. Works well with bass and bream too.

5. Wearing surgical gloves once more, work the paste into the flesh and cavity and set aside on a lightly oiled baking tray.

6. Roast in a pre-heated oven 190 degrees C for 20-25 minutes

Serve with steamed Asian greens, (Bok Choy/Chinese Cabbage etc) in a delicious dressing and boiled rice.

TheYummy Dressing (Asian Greens)

Combine all of these ingredients and keep tasting and tweaking till its perfect for you.

soy sauce
sweet chili sauce
rice wine vinegar
few drops sesame oil
chopped garlic clove
a smidgen of grated ginger
chopped mild red chili
chopped spring onions

Use as a marinade for all meat, fish & seafood. As a salad dressing or a stir-fry sauce.

Or just throw it liberally over steamed vegetables like this. Just delicious!