Seafood Made Simple: Aishling Moore's expert guide to grilling fish

Irish Examiner

a day ago

Barbequing fish is nothing to be intimidated of, once you consider a couple of key factors.
Preheat your barbeque: When barbequing it's vital to have your barbecue lit at least 30 minutes before you plan on cooking, organisation is key when you're playing with fire. When building your barbeque create different temperature areas (i.e. have an area where you're feeding the fire, an area for cooking and an area for resting all at different temperatures). Cook over white embers.
Season your grill: Just like cast iron pans, barbeques can be seasoned! After the initial phase of fuel burning, and while you're waiting for the excess smoke to subside, cut an onion in half and rub it all over the cooking surface of the barbeque. A great tip I picked up off my pals Pat & Jim from Smokin' Soul.
Cook whole fish: Mackerel, sardines and red mullet are perfect fish for the barbeque. The oiliness of these fish works so well with smoke. John Dory is a great fish for barbequing; it has such resilient skin that it's great for those who are fearful of things sticking.
Shellfish: work beautifully on a barbeque. Langoustines whole or sliced in half lengthways cook so quickly, as the shells are such good conductors of heat. I love grilling oysters with a little nob of butter cooked till they are quivering in the shell.
Keep marinades simple: anticipate that sugar, herbs, and spices will burn. Brining works so well as a result. I love marinading monkfish in yogurt and lots of spices before cooking. The yogurt builds up such a great barrier with the grill.
Easy accompaniments: opt for hassle free sides that you can have ready ahead of time to be finished just before serving so you can focus on tending to the fire.
Grilled red mullet with a smashed cucumber salad
recipe by:Aishling Moore
When barbequing it's vital to have your barbecue lit at least 30 minutes before you plan on cooking, organisation is key when you're playing with fire.
Servings
4
Preparation Time 
50 mins
Cooking Time 
18 mins
Total Time 
1 hours 8 mins
Course 
Main
Ingredients For the red mullet:
4 whole red mullet (gutted and scaled)
2tb rapeseed oil
Sea salt
For the cucumber salad:
2 cucumbers
2 red chillies deseeded and finely sliced
1 clove of garlic minced
1 tsp ginger minced
2tb soy sauce
2tb black rice vinegar
1tb chilli oil
2tb toasted sesame oil
1 pinch caster sugar
1 small bunch of basil
Method
To make the salad, smash the cucumbers with a rolling pin and chop into bite-sized chunks. Place in a medium-sized mixing bowl.
To make the dressing, combine the finely sliced chillies, minced garlic and ginger, soy, black rice vinegar, chilli oil, toasted sesame oil and sugar in a small bowl. Whisk to combine and taste to season. No need to add salt to the recipe, the soy acts as the salt here.
To serve, add the dressing to the cucumbers, tear the fresh basil and dress before serving immediately.
Light your barbecue at least 30 minutes before you intend on cooking.
Prepare the barbecue for direct cooking. It's vital when barbecuing fish to cook at the highest heat possible to avoid the fish sticking to the bars of the barbecue.
Lightly grease the whole red mullets with rapeseed oil and season with sea salt flakes.
Place the whole fish on the hottest part of the barbecue; be careful when doing so, as the oil droplets may catch.
Cook the red mullet on one side for 8-10 minutes until charred depending on the size of the fish.
Use a fish slice to free the fish from the bars of the barbecue and turn using a pair of heat-proof kitchen tongs.
When barbecuing fish, it is important to only turn the fish once, minimising the damage you can cause to the exterior and to prevent the fish from sticking.
Cook for a further 6-8 minutes until the whole fish is nicely charred and cooked through.
Serve with the smashed cucumber salad.
Fish tails:
I love barbecuing butterflied whole fish; but it can be a little tricker as it can stick to the rack. sticking. The frame of the fish certainly helps with turning and removing.
If you'd like to have a go at cooking a butterflied fish over the barbeque, ask your fish monger to prepare the fish for you, still watch out for smaller bones.
Removing the cooked opaque flesh from the bone is a breeze if you approach with a delicate hand and use the frame and bone structure of the fish as a guide
If you'd prefer to steer clear of the barbecue, you could bake the fish in a preheated oven at 175°C.
The best way to check that the fish is cooked through is by using a thermometer. Always insert into the thickest part of the fish
As cucumbers are very high in water, it's important not to dress this salad until right before serving.
You'll find black rice vinegar in all Asian food supermarkets; you could substitute with 1 tbsp rice vinegar and 1 tbsp of balsamic vinegar.
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