vegetable - rice, risotto, fish, prawn
t=teaspoon T=tablespoon
These recipes are for your personal use only and may not be added in any form to archives other works.
FISH AND PRAWN RISOTTO
This is a a filling dish, elegant and delicious yet easy to make. It is not cooked as a classic risotto because long grain rice is used and the dish is covered during cooking. It can be cooked in the classic manner using risotto rice - see note at end of recipe. The stock for this can be made in advance or a good fish bouillon cube can be used, however, the flavour will greatly suffer!
serves 2 very well or 4 with side dishes
250 g. monkfish filet (or other firm white fish or lobster tail meat)
250 g. cod or haddock filet
250 g. whole prawns
1 sm. onion
2 t. clarified butter or 1 t. butter and 1 t. oil
zest of one lemon
juice of 1/2 lemon
200 g. long grain rice
450 ml. fish stock (if strong dilute with a little water)
1 young fennel (+ - 300 to 400 g.)
2 T. chopped fennel green (or dill)
1 hand length of fennel stalk, if available
10 green asparagus tips (+ - 4 fingers long)
small handful of fresh butter beans + - 10 (or baby lima beans)
salt, pepper
1 packet of saffron, ground or equivalent
2 T. sliced cashew nuts (or coarse chopped - almond may also be used)
fish stock: (If making your own does not appeal to you, your fish seller may have frozen to sell or use bullion cubes as a last resort. Still, simmer at least 15 minutes with the shrimp heads and peel for an extra tasty flavour.)
1 fish head
grate
tail
heads and peel of prawns
1 sm. onion
1 garlic clove
a few stalks of parsley
1 lg. bay leaf
garnish: fennel sprigs
Place all the ingredients for the fish broth in a deep pot and cover with 500 ml. of water. Bring to a boil, reduce heat, partially cover and allow to simmer for 20 minutes or so. Strain off and discard the ingredients used. Add the saffron threads, stir and set aside.
Chop the onion and sauté in the melted butter until soft while you trim the fennel, reserving the feathery green. Discard the outer, tough layer. Cut in half lengthways and cut into finger thick slices. Add the fennel to the onion and continue to sauté for a few minutes. Chop the fennel green and set aside.
Cut the fish filets into bite size pieces of about 2 cm., check to be sure the shrimp are all de-veined.
Add the washed and drained rice to the onion and stir well. Add the lemon zest, bay leaf, fennel stalk, and the hot fish stock. Season with salt and pepper. Stir again and cover. Over the lowest heat, allow to cook for 15 minutes.
Add the butter beans and quickly recover. Allow to cook 5 minutes. Add the fish, shrimp and the asparagus tips. Stir with a fork to distribute and cook a further 5 minutes.
Sprinkle over the juice, the cashew and the chopped fennel greens. Serve immediately.
Note: if you prefer a true, creamy risotto for this dish be sure to review Risotto-the Secrets of Success. Replace the long grain rice with a risotto rice such as arborio, add the butter beans when you have about 2 ladles of broth remaining. Do not cover during cooking as is indicated above for long grain rice. Add the fish and shrimp with the last ladle of broth. By the time the liquid is absorbed, they will be done. Increase liquid to 8oo ml. Increase the amount of butter used to at least 2 tablespoons, plus more that is added (cold) at the end. This may be a strong fish broth diluted to make 800 ml. As is indicated in Risotto-the Secrets to Success, add a little parmesan and cold butter bits at the end. Delicious!
All recipes are excerpts from "Welcome to My Kitchen" - The Epicurean Table and are copyright of the author. Recipes are not to be
added to any form of archive or other works of any kind. Contact the author for further information.
The Epicurean Table © 1999-2002 Patricia Conant