This week, we are returning to some beautiful seafood to inspire our menu. With spring finally rearing its head after a long and very, very damp winter, we can look forward to brighter evenings, lighter food and hopefully a glass of something decent to wash it all down. While the price of quality seafood has risen dramatically in recent months, I’m hoping the pressure will ease in coming weeks, as the weather composes itself and our boats get to work at sea.
For me, seafood is one of the few remaining, mystical ingredients. It’s also the ingredient that ignited my passion for cooking at a young age. For the most part, it remains a wild and uncertain food source. Farming is prevalent for certain species but the quality pales in comparison to their wild counterparts (and that’s before we consider the environmental impact). There is still a romanticism to the fishing fleet embarking into the Atlantic to places like the Porcupine Bank, hunting an invisible prey. Yes, we should have more Irish boats fishing our own waters, but leaving politics aside, there is no greater thrill than the possibility of what a fishing net or pot might contain as it is hoisted back toward the surface after a long soak.
With this in mind, and out of respect to the people who risk their lives to put these ingredients on our table, I am happy to spend a bit extra for quality seafood. This week’s recipes reflect that.
Large, wild Irish cod is hard to beat when it’s fresh. The flesh should be firm to touch, the colour glistening with a rainbow shimmer or “nacre” in the flakes when cooked properly. We have served it here on a bed of Spanish style goodies, from chunks of chorizo to olives, pickled onions and baby potatoes. It’s all gently fried in a flavoured olive oil with smoked paprika and cherry tomatoes. The whole loin of cod is added for the last 10 minutes until just cooked and finished with lemon zest and more of that paprika. This is a one-pan wonder that could happily sit on any restaurant menu with the quality of ingredients used.
The second recipe uses one of our truly great ingredients: Irish crabmeat. No, it’s not cheap, but it repays you handsomely in flavour. We’ve served crab cakes here, with a 50:50 ratio of potato to meat. They can be made in advance and cooked up to order. In an ideal world, serve them up with a simple salad in the sun and wash them down with a citrusy glass of vino or beer. Old Bay seasoning, born out of Maryland, Baltimore, is the quintessential spice blend when it comes to shellfish.
It’s based around celery, paprika and pepper among other delights and works wonderfully when blended into a mayonnaise and seasoned highly. It’s another example of how perfection in eating is generally achieved through simplicity; thankfully we have the ingredients in Ireland to deliver.
