Barbecued snapper

March 12, 2009

There were some small fresh snapper that I swear were winking at me from the tray at the fishmonger’s the other day so they were soon in my shopping trolley ready for their last journey.

They each weighed in at around 450g, a good size for an individual serving.

The fishmonger had dealt with the nasty bits and removed the gills but I still had to scrape off the scales. The eyes were bright and clear and the fish smelled sweet and not at all fishy so they were good and fresh.

I like to make a well flavoured paste to rub into the fish and put a bunch of mixed herbs in the cavity to add further flavour. The fish can be baked in the oven, but as this was a warm, pleasant evening ours went on the barbecue. This recipe serves two. Double or triple the recipe for more servings.

Barbecued snapper

2 small snapper or other whole fish per person
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
1 large knob of ginger
2 cloves garlic
2 hot chillies
small bunch of fresh coriander, including roots, well washed
2 tablespoons fish sauce
1 tablespoon olive oil
2 lemons
a few stalks each of parsley, mint and coriander
salt and pepper

Toast the cumin seeds in a dry pan until they start to pop. Place in a mortar. Add a knob of ginger, peeled, the peeled garlic cloves, the deseeded chillies and the roughly chopped coriander. Pound with a pestle until reduced to a paste then stir in the fish sauce, oil and the juice of half a lemon. Cut the remaining lemon into slices.

Scale the fish if necessary. Make several slashes on each side of the snapper and push in some of the paste then a slice of lemon. Fill the stomach cavity with a few sprigs of herbs. Grind over some salt and pepper.

Spray a large piece of baking paper with a little oil them place the fish on top and wrap into a parcel. Wrap this in a double layer of foil.

Heat up the barbecue then cook on a medium heat for approximately 15 minutes each side. Check in a thicker part to see if the fish flakes readily. Serve with a tossed salad.

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