Fennel and bay-roasted flounder with hot tamarind sauce served with lemon saffron rice
INGREDIENTS
(serves four)
4 x 250g whole flounder
20g fennel seeds roasted
8 bay leaves
60ml vegetable oil
Salt and pepper
2 cloves garlic
50g curry leaves
6tsp tamarind paste
3tsp tomato purée
10g fresh ginger
Juice of 1 lemon
50g fragrant fish stock
2 spring onion heads cut in slivers
For the lemon saffron rice
75g chopped onion
50g oil
300g basmati rice
450ml fish stock
½tsp saffron soaked in boiling water
Juice and pulp of 2 lemons
Milled black pepper
Coarse grain salt
METHOD
Prepare the fish in the usual manner removing the skin and head. Heat the fennel seeds and bay leaves in oil. Season the fish on both sides and coat thoroughly with the infused oil and flavourings.
Seal the flounder in a hot roasting tin add garlic and roast in a hot oven basting regularly. Remove the fish and keep warm and remove the garlic.
Deep-fry the curry leaves in a hot deep-fat fryer for a few seconds remove drain and season and keep warm to one side.
For the lemon saffron rice sweat some diced onion in oil. Add washed basmati fry until transparent fill up with fish stock stir in the soaked saffron cover and allow to simmer for 18 minutes. When cooked fold in the lemon juice and pulp and check seasoning.
Into another pan strain the fish-cooking liquor from the roasting tin add the prepared tamarind ginger tomato purée lemon juice and the fragrant fish stock and reduce to a glaze with the halves of garlic.
To serve place the rice down the centre of the plate with the flounder just overlapping down the other side. Run the crisp curry leaves alongside drizzle the sauce over the fish and decorate with slivers of spring onion and garlic.
