Pan fried Dab fillets with Mediterranean Vegetables

Makes/Serves 2

Time: less than 30 minutes

You need this:

2 Dabs, filleted (you need three or four fillets per person, depending on their size)
5 or 6 medium size tomatoes (again, it depends on the size)
1 red onion
2 peppers (any colour, I happened to have a red and a green one)
1 courgette
1 clove of garlic
1 teaspoon capers
2 tablespoons fine semolina (or plain flour – see TIP)
1 bunch basil
Olive oil for cooking
Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

You do this:
First, skin the tomatoes.

To do this, put a medium sized pan of water on to boil, score a cross in the base of each tomato, and when the water is boiling, plunge the tomatoes in using a slotted spoon, turn off the heat, leaving them in the hot water for no more than one minute,  carefully take them out and plunge them into cold or iced water for a few minutes. The skins will easily peel off.

Put a frying pan on to heat and pour in a couple of tablespoons of olive oil, peel and dice the onion, dice the peppers (remove the seeds) and the courgette. Put them in the pan and stir, dice the tomatoes the same size and add them as well.
As you stir and cook, occasionally add a little more olive oil to keep the vegetables “moist” (the oil will add flavour as well)
Next, peel and chop the clove of garlic and add that together with a teaspoonful of capers.

Turn the heat down and keep stirring and adding a little more oil. The tomatoes and oil will have cooked into a “sauce” for the vegetables. Chop the basil and keep to one side (if you add this at the last moment, you will keep a great deal more of its flavour)

Lay the Dab fillets on a clean chopping board and season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Sprinkle over two spoons of semolina (see TIP below) and coat both sides of all the fillets.

Put another frying pan on the stove, add and heat 1 tablespoon of olive oil in it, and then carefully put the coated fillets in the pan and cook for about 2 minutes each side. Then remove and place on some kitchen towel to absorb any excess oil

Season the basil into the Mediterranean vegetable, stir in the chopped basil and put a couple of spoonfuls  on each plate.

Add the cooked fillets.

Serve! Eat! Enjoy!

TIP
1) Dabs are a great alternative to Plaice or Sole (Lemon or Dover), and I think they are plumper and tastier!
2) Using fine semolina instead of flour as a coating gives the fish a fabulous “crunch”

Fairly exclusive and not that easy to get into, but well worth trying to get a reservation.  A great dining experience and something that makes me proud to be in the catering profession

Waitrose customer service team finally got back to me mid evening yesterday (Tuesday)

The outcome is, that, yes even though they have been promoting Dabs in their magazine dated 11^th August, their fish buyer now says that there won’t be any available until the beginning of September!

Since my blog yesterday, I received emails and messages of support from many contacts, saying that their local supermarkets (not Waitrose!) have Dabs in stock – even a London based fish supplier contacted me asking me how many I needed!

I did call in to Waitrose today, but, of course, no Dabs!

Several phone calls to Waitrose’s local supermarket competitors and each and every one of them said yes, they have Dabs in stock!

A feature in a later Waitrose magazine features an article by Nick Fisher (!) who is fishing advisor to “Hugh’s Fish Fight”, bemoaning the fact that 75% of shellfish caught in the UK is exported, He went on to say that he watched 35 tons of British squid being offloaded at Brixham fish market, but not one Devon retail outlet stocked fresh squid – it was all frozen, imported from the Far East

A brief look around the Waitrose fish counter this morning showed sprats, sardines and Scottish salmon (I should hope so!). But, unfortunately, a great deal of the fish on the counter stated that it was from Iceland, or North Atlantic. With prawns from Madagascar- come on Waitrose support what’s left of our UK fishing fleet and buy and stock more UK caught fish.

Nick Fisher also pointed out a bizarre fact – we export 75% of the fish we catch and import 80% of the fish we eat!

Further research on the Waitrose website and I discover that the elusive Dabs that they may or may not be stocking come from Iceland! Apparently Dab seasonality is virtually year round in UK coastal waters, with an upturn in numbers during September.

So now I know that even though Waitrose support the UK fishing industry, they prefer to stock Icelandic fish rather than UK caught fish so I won’t be buying them now anyway!

The Waitrose customer service colleague also said that the company buyer was having difficulty obtain a supply of Dabs. I work in the hospitality industry and it took me less than 30 minutes to find a commercial supplier in the UK who can get British Dabs, so, Waitrose! I challenge you to either find some British Dabs to stock, or find a better fish buyer for your company!!

There are a lot of well known people supporting this campaign  http://www.fishfight.net/famous-fish-fighters/

My supermarket, Waitrose, recently bannered in their weekly magazine “Inspired by Hugh? Try a different catch today” and stated that they would make room for and stock species like: Cornish Pollack and Icelandic Dab and Whiting, as well as Hake and Sole. Not such strange fish, easy to cook and enjoyable to eat.

Now, I love Dab (a little like plump Plaice and tastier in my opinion) so I hot footed it to my local store brandishing a handful of cash and asked for some Dabs. The conversation went like this:
“Haven’t got any” “But your magazine says you are going to stock them” “They are not available in all stores” “but it doesn’t say that, you’re misleading your customers” “I’ve checked and we should have some on our next delivery, first thing Tuesday”

Tuesday came, I went to the store, and they still didn’t have any. “There’s a shortage” “but they’re in season there should be plenty” “come back Thursday”

I emailed the head office with my comments and received an auto response “we aim to investigate and respond within 72hours…” They didn’t. So I emailed them again, same thing

Five visits later, still no Dabs, I emailed them again and sent them a message on Twitter (@waitrose )

At last, a response, please phone customer services on 0800 188 884….., so I did, they weren’t very knowledgeable, but promised to investigate and get back to me.

They haven’t yet, I’m still waiting

My problem is this, we are overfishing certain species and there are just as tasty easily obtainable alternatives. The major supermarkets have huge purchasing power and should be able to make a difference. At the moment it seems it is all lip-service, bandwagon jumping for maximum publicity, publicly patting themselves on the back and then failing to deliver.

So today, Waitrose, you go into my Hall of Shame!

Eggs Benedict – There are two claims to this name. (Take your pick!)

1) Lemuel Benedict, a New York stockbroker, claimed to have gone to the Waldorf Hotel for breakfast one day in 1894 while suffering a hangover. He asked for a restorative in the form of toast, bacon, poached eggs, and Hollandaise sauce on the side. The maître d’hotel of the Waldorf took an interest in Benedict’s order, and adapted it for the Waldorf menu, substituting English muffins and ham and adding truffles.

2) In 1893, the head chef of Delmonico’s restaurant, created the dish for Mr. and Mrs. LeGrand Benedict, New York stockbroker and his socialite wife.

Chateaubriand – both a cut of beef and a recipe for steak named for Vicount Chateaubriand (1768-1848), French writer and diplomat. The dish was created around 1822 while Chateaubriand was ambassador to England.

Coquilles St. Jacques – The French for scallops – Coquilles, this popular scallop dish with butter and garlic, owe their name to St James the first martyred apostle. His shrine in Santiago de Campostela, Spain, draws pilgrims from all over Europe. The scallop’s shell became an emblem of the pilgrimage as it was used as a water cup along the way, and sewn to the pilgrims’ clothes like a badge.

Pavlova – named after the famous Russian ballerina, Anna Pavlova (1881-1931), Both Australia and New Zealand have claimed to be the source of the meringue (“light as Pavlova”) and fruit dessert.

Beef Wellington – Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington (1769-1852), British hero of the battle of Waterloo,  has this dish of beef named after him made with mushrooms, truffles and Madeira sauce, all encased in a pastry crust He apparently liked this dish so much it had to be served at every formal dinner, the shape also resembles the famous Wellington boot.

Pizza Margherita – Queen Margherita of Savoy (1851-1926) was presented with this pizza in the colours of the Italian flag on a trip to Naples around. 1889.

Cherry Garcia ice cream –Ben & Jerry’s ice cream homage to American rock band Grateful Dead’s leader Jerry Garcia (1942-1995). (But you knew that one – didn’t you!!)

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160g Hot smoked salmon fillet
150g natural yoghurt
1 large bunch dill, chopped
1 lemon
Freshly ground black pepper

The large chopping/blender attachment of a “stick” blender or a food processor

You do this:

 Remove the skin of the salmon, and break it into the blender. Next, juice the lemon and add that.

Blitz the salmon and lemon for a couple of seconds to start the “mousse”.  Then add or pour in the yoghurt and the chopped dill and then blitz a few times more to get the consistency you prefer (I like mine “chunky” but you can make it as smooth as you like), scraping down the sides of the mixer to get everything  mixed in well.

Season with cracked black pepper – you won’t want salt as the fish, lemon and yoghurt should give the mousse a “tartness”.  Chill until you need it (it will keep a couple of days in a fridge)  or eat immediately if you can’t wait!

Serve with a crisp seasonal salad and bread or crackers of your choice

Eat!  Enjoy!

Tips:

1) You can use smoked mackeral or regular smoked salmon, and substitute chopped chives and/or parsley instead of dill.
2) This only takes around 10-15 minutes to make but you could make it in advance as a quick cold starter fo a dinner party

Supermarkets are very crafty at having a shelf full of things that “compliment” each other right in the middle of the store where everyone passes by, complete with eye catching “seasonal” advertising banners

But don’t get carried away,  if you only went in the store for a bottle of wine, and came out with glasses, corkscrew and chill out music CD, you’ve fallen prey to what is known as “cross-merchandising” which is also their way of shifting old stock that isn’t selling well

RULE NUMBER FIVE – IGNORE THOSE “IMPULSE BUYS”

Looking around it is difficult to see how many people have a truly balanced diet, as few people in this country are suffering from malnutrition or starvation, but it is easy to see those who eat more than they need to, and those who eat too much of the wrong kinds of food

A balanced diet contains sufficient amounts of fibre and the various nutrients (carbohydrates, fats, proteins, vitamins, and minerals) to ensure good health. Food also provides the appropriate amount of energy and adequate amounts of water. It should not contain items that are harmful.  A balanced diet should be both adequate and wholesome

Unfortunately the word “diet” or “dieting” has, sadly, been hi-jacked to mean a way of losing weight. It has become a national pastime, with everyone waiting in line for the next “diet of the month”, guaranteed to make them fit and trim.

Some diets are valid, for example: diets for diabetics, stroke victims, ulcer patients, etc. but these are specific diets for specific needs.

Diet is really a good word; it is “dieting” that causes all the problems!

You need this:

1 packet of Feta cheese (see TIP below)
1 red onion
1 lemon
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoonful of pink peppercorns (drain the brine)
Good quality virgin olive oil
An airtight container

You do this:

Peel and thinly slice the red onion and slice the lemon as thinly as possible

Cut the Feta cheese into cubes ready for a salad

In the airtight container make a couple of layers of red onion slices, lemon slices, the peppercorns and the feta cubes. Put the bay leaf on top and cover with the virgin olive oil.

Seal the container and leave for a day or two to marinate.

Remove the bay leaf and spoon over a crisp salad, everything else is edible

Eat! Enjoy!

TIP: The brand of Feta I use is made with sheep’s milk only, but use the type you prefer