Sashimi. Carpaccio. Ceviche. Words to get the mouth watering and that say fresh, light, healthy and delicious. All are classic and simple ways to prepare a piece of fish. And great to eat after the rich excesses of Christmas food, especially on a humid night during a Sydney summer.
All three of those time-honoured preparations are referenced in the recipes below by the thin slicing of raw, quality fish, the anointment by a flavoursome dressing, and “cooking” the flesh with the acid tang of lime or lemon.
Gleamingly fresh Atlantic salmon, snapper and kingfish fillets were used in these dishes but other fish types that could be used are whiting, garfish, bream and, of course, tuna. Use the recipes as a general guideline to mix and match different fish with different sauces. What you definitely need is a good fishmonger and a sharp knife.
Caren
The 3 dishes together are sufficient for 10 people for a light entrée.
ATLANTIC SALMON WITH WASABI AND SHISO
250 gm sashimi quality Atlantic salmon
2-4 teaspoons wasabi
¼ cup fresh, tiny shiso leaves (or perilla leaves)
Place the salmon in the freezer for half an hour and then slice it finely across the grain.
Place the wasabi in the middle of a serving dish and the slices around the outside. Scatter with shiso leaves. Serve with some gluten-free soy sauce or tamari if you like.
SNAPPER WITH PRESERVED LEMON AND GINGER
400 gm snapper fillets
1 tablespoon finely diced preserved lemon skin
1 teaspoon finely grated fresh ginger
2 tablespoons rice vinegar (a dark version was used in this case)
1 teaspoon gluten-free soy sauce or tamari
1 teaspoon caster sugar
1 teaspoon nigella seeds
Using a very sharp knife, dice the snapper into approximately 1 cm square pieces.
Put all the other ingredients, except for the seeds, into a glass jar and shake well.
Gently coat the fish with the sauce and then spoon the mixture into a serving bowl. Scatter the nigella seeds over the top.
KINGFISH WITH LIME, SOY AND RICE CRACKER BALLS
250 gm kingfish fillet
50 ml strained lime juice
60 ml gluten free soy sauce or tamari
20 ml mirin seasoning
1/2 teaspoon sesame oil
1 teaspoon tiny rice cracker balls (optional)
Place the fillet in the freezer for half an hour.
Meanwhile put the lime juice, soy sauce, mirin and sesame oil in a glass jar and shake well.
Remove the fillet from the freezer and slice it very finely across the grain.
Lay the slices on a serving plate and spoon over some of the dressing and scatter the rice balls if using.
The leftover dressing will keep for a few days so use it on a piece of grilled fish or to season some steamed rice.