Whether you adhere to Lent or not, a Good Friday fish dinner is always a lovely way to balance the indulgence of Easter. We have so many beautiful options for fish in New Zealand, make sure you buy as fresh as possible. Or if you’re friends with a fisherman, butter them up for a fish or two. I like to buy my fish from the Auckland Fish Markets. They’ve been newly refurbished, look wonderful and their staff are incredibly knowledgable.
I also advocate diversifying the fish you buy. There are hundreds of different types of fish but typically we tend to stick to what we know. By branching out, we can try lesser known varieties that are often more sustainable than their more commonly known counterparts. I’m thinking of blue warehou, gurnard or trevally that hasn’t been smoked. These are all lovely white fleshed fish that are delicious! So for this Good Friday fish buy the firm white fish fillets you can find. Ask your fishmonger for recommendations; I like monkfish and blue cod for this. You’ll want one fillet person, boned and skinned. This also makes a beautiful midweek dinner, as it is so simple. The topping can be made ahead of time and kept in a jar in the fridge. It will keep for a week or so.
I like this served with roast potatoes and these hot buttered radishes…
Ingredients
- 1 tbsp butter
- 2 tbsp olive oil
- 1x brown onion, peeled and sliced
- 1x leek, dark green removed and sliced
- 2x cloves garlic, minced
- 1x lemon, zested
- Salt and pepper to season
- 1/2 cup cream
- 1/4 cup dry white wine
- 4x firm white fish fillets
- 3 tbsp wholegrain mustard
- 1/2 cup breadcrumbs
- 4 cloves garlic, minced
- 1x lemon, zested
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh parsley
- 2 tbsp chopped fresh rosemary
- 2 tbsp ground sumac
- 1/2 cup grated parmesan
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 200 degrees and line a baking tray. Heat butter and olive oil in a big pot, add onion, leeks, garlic, lemon zest and salt and pepper. Cook over a medium heat for 20 minutes until softened and translucent. Add cream and wine and then cook a further 15-20 minutes uncovered so that liquid is reduced. You should be left with a leeky creamy sauce; just keep to one side.
Spread the creamy leek sauce in a baking tray and top with each fish fillet. Smear each fish fillet with mustard. In a bowl, combine the breadcrumbs, second measure of minced garlic, lemon zest, herbs, sumac and parmesan. Mix together and smoosh on top of the mustard, so that each fillet has a layer of topping. Bake at 200 degrees for half an hour, until the fish is cooked and flaky; the sauce is super creamy and the topping is golden.
Serve hot from the oven with roast potatoes or fresh bread and hot buttered radishes.
