SEARED MONKFISH WITH HERBY LENTILS
Ingredients
- 200g/8oz Puy lentils
- 50ml/2fl oz olive oil
- 25g/1oz carrot
- very finely diced
- 25g/1oz celery
- very finely diced
- 25g/1oz leek
- very finely diced
- 1 garlic clove
- crushed and then finely diced
- 2cm/¾in piece of root ginger
- crushed and then finely diced
- Maldon sea salt
- to taste
- freshly ground white pepper
- to taste
- 300ml/10fl oz good quality chicken stock or fish stock
- 3 ripe vine tomatoes
- skinned
- de-seeded and roughly chopped
- 3 tbsp chopped fresh coriander or chervil
- 2 tbsp sunflower oil
- 4 monkfish fillets
- weighing about 100g/4 oz each
- squeeze of lemon juice
- 2 tbsp crème fraîche
- 25g/1oz fresh chopped herbs (flat parsley
- coriander
- mint or basil)
Directions
- Cook the Puy lentils in boiling water for 20-30 minutes or until tender. Drain them in a colander and spread on a tray to dry.
- Warm the olive oil in a saucepan and sweat the carrot
- celery
- leek
- garlic and ginger until soft. Add the seasoning and cook for 2-3 minutes. Stir in the lentils
- then add the stock and bring to the boil.
- Add the tomatoes and two tablespoons of the chopped coriander or chervil. Check the seasoning. Simmer for 30 seconds
- or until you have a loose sauce (not too wet
- not too dry)
- then remove from the heat.
- Heat the sunflower oil in a frying pan or ribbed cast iron pan until very hot
- then add the monkfish fillets. Fry them until well browned on both sides. If you leave them for 2-3 minutes before turning to cook the other side
- this should prevent sticking.
- Remove the monkfish from the pan. It should be brown on the outside but still soft in the centre. Leave it to rest on a baking tray and season with salt
- pepper and lemon juice.
- Stir the crème fraîche into the lentils
- which should be looking nice and rich by now.
- Divide the lentils between four warmed serving bowls
- making sure the sauce is evenly distributed. Cut each piece of fish into 6-8 slices and place on top of the lentils.
- Garnish with the rest of the chopped coriander and the other chopped herbs and serve at once.
