food hits and misses

No photo of this meal - it was so delicious we ate it before I had time to get the camera out! I'll definitely be making it again, though, so will probably get around to adding a picture later.

Generally speaking, I use cook books for inspiration, rather than always religiously following recipes. So nine times out of ten, if I'm cooking something from a tradition outside my own, it's probably not going to be all that authentic. Still, if the end result is something yum, I'm not all that concerned about how close to the original it is.

Last night's dinner was based on a recipe for sole with coconut and ginger. With a distinct lack of sole in the house, I substituted flathead, and mixed a few other things around to match what was in the fridge. For the original recipe, try The Brazilian Kitchen, which is where I got my inspiration.

Flathead with coconut and ginger

For the topping:
1 tbspn olive oil
1 green capsicum, seeded and chopped
1 red capsicum, seeded and chopped
1 red onion, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, minced

For the sauce
1 tbspn olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced
3 tbspn ginger, minced or grated
1 red onion, chopped
100 ml lime juice (around 3 limes)
300 ml vegetable stock
270 ml coconut milk

200g flathead fillets
1/4 cup flour
2 tbspn butter
salt and pepper to taste

Method

Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan and add the capsicum and onion. Saute until the onion is translucent. Add the garlic and continue cooking for another minute. Remove from heat and set aside. In another pan, heat the remaining olive oil and add the onion, garlic and ginger. Saute until the onion is translucent. Add the lime juice and reduce by around half. Add the stock and bring to the boil before adding the coconut milk. Cook, stirring occasionally until the mixture has thickened and reduced. Dredge the fish in seasoned flour. Heat the butter in a large pan. Cook the fish until it is golden on each side. To serve, sprinkle the capsicum mix on top of the fish then spoon over sauce. Serve with arrox loco or ensalata palmito.