Darina Allen: How to make fish fingers and California-style fish tacos

Ahead of World Ocean Day, Darina Allen sings the praises of Ireland's fresh fish 

Homemade fresh fish finger with tartar sauce and lemon

World Ocean Day is on Wednesday, June 8. I am not fully clear if this is meant to be a celebration or a day of reflection to remind us of the chronic mess we humans have got ourselves into.

In our busy lives, most of us have taken the oceans for granted. We somehow haven’t understood that mankind depends on the health of the oceans for our very existence.

The oceans cover over 70% of the earth’s surface, provide 97% of the world’s water supply as well as 80% of the planet’s biodiversity.

94% of the earth’s living species exist within the oceans and apparently much is yet to be discovered.

70%-80% of the oxygen we breathe is produced by marine plants plus the oceans feed and provide livelihoods for billions of people.

The ocean plays a vital role in our climate. For decades, scientists and marine biologists have stressed that rapidly rising ocean temperatures are causing the ice to melt, altering coral reefs and coastal ecosystems, causing cold water habitats to shrink, resulting in less plankton available for marine life.

Rising temperatures are putting low lying nations such as the Maldives in the Indian Ocean at immediate risk of disaster. For centuries, the oceans have been used as a dumping ground for all manner of waste, sewage, plastic in its many forms, six-pack rings, fishing nets, and polystyrene. This harms sea mammals, fish and seabirds who get entangled in it or feed it to their young mistaking it for food.

Although the ocean is vast, it turns out it is more easily polluted and acidified than was originally thought.

Many of you will have read about the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, a vast floating dump, 15 times the size of Ireland in the Pacific Ocean. It contains over 100 million tonnes of plastic debris.

We have reached a tipping point.

At last, scientists and governments of many countries are cooperating to limit overfishing and control pollution in a frantic effort to slow down global warming — hopefully it’s not too late.

Here in Ireland, a little progress has been made but there is still much to be done. Year-round swimmers have given further impetus to the Clean Beach campaign and Blue Flags are much coveted.

So after all that, let’s go back into the kitchen to cook some delicious fish.

It can be difficult to know where to find information on sustainable fish, it’s much easier to get information on the health benefits.

There are few things more delicious than a piece of spanking fresh fish simply cooked. Freshness is everything. Remember, fresh fish looks bright and lively and DOESN’T smell fishy. Stay alert when shopping: when fish says ‘freshly landed’ it could be five days old. It means something very different to ‘freshly caught.’

Forever and ever, fish has been referred to as ‘brain food’ and numerous studies confirm the health benefits of eating fresh fish at least once a week.

The omega-3 fat found in fish is now scientifically proven to be helpful in the treatment of lots of health conditions.

From the cook’s point of view, it is the quintessential fast food. I am a big fan of ‘crudo’ or thinly sliced raw fish but it must absolutely be fresh. If that idea doesn’t ‘float your boat’, there are a million other super quick recipes to enjoy with your family and friends.

It’s really easy to overcook fish, remember the flesh just needs to change from translucent to opaque, a matter of two to three minutes if the fillet is thin like plaice, lemon sole or megrim. A little longer for a piece of hake or haddock.

It’s also worth knowing that sea vegetables are 10 to 20 times more nutritious than anything grown on land.

How do we know what fish is sustainable in Irish water? It is unbelievably difficult for the concerned public to get simple coherent information on what to buy and believe me — I’ve tried! My preferred option is day boat fish but there are few enough day boats still fishing around our coasts for a variety of reasons.

The bigger boats can go further out and stay longer at sea. They target the fish shoals with sophisticated technology. The ‘unintended’ consequences often result in copious amounts of by-catch and decimation of the ocean floor and breeding grounds. Many species have been overfished almost to the point of extinction which impacts on many other species and habitats in the complex web. So, let’s do our best to seek out non-threatened species and strive to support our local fishing communities. Be prepared to pay more for day boat fish if you are fortunate enough to be able to source it.

Try at least to ascertain that the fish you buy is caught in Irish waters so we are supporting the Irish fishing community who are experiencing unprecedented challenges.

See www.sustainableseafood.ie and www.bim.ie for more information.

Baja-Style Fish Tacos

recipe by:Darina Allen

These Baja-Style fish tacos are an easy way to impress at a summer barbeque

Servings

10

Preparation Time

 10 mins

Cooking Time

 17 mins

Total Time

 27 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Mexican

Ingredients

• 10 portions of fresh fish - haddock, monkfish, brill, plaice, lemon sole, weighing about 125g (4 1/2oz) each

• olive oil, for deep-frying

• For the chilli beer batter:

• 225g (8oz) plain flour

• 2 tsp English mustard powder

• 2 tspmild or hot chilli powder

• 1 tsp salt

• 2 tsp granulated sugar

• 3 organic, free-range eggs

• 225ml (8fl oz) light beer or a mixture of beer and water

• For the chipotle mayonnaise

• 225ml (8fl oz) homemade mayonnaise

• 1 1/2 tablespoons puréed chipotle chillies in adobo

• juice of 1 lime

• 1 tablespoon chopped coriander

• a pinch of salt

• To serve:

• 10 corn tortillas

• 20 lettuce leaves

• Guacamole or avocado slices

• Tomato Salsa

• Slaw

• a few sprigs of coriander

Method

1. First make the chilli beer batter. Sift the flour into a bowl and add the mustard and chilli powders, salt and sugar. Make a well in the centre, crack in the eggs, then gradually add the beer, whisking all the time from the centre to the outside of the bowl in ever increasing concentric circles until all the flour is incorporated. Cover and leave to stand while you make the mayonnaise.

2. Mix the chilli in adobe, lime juice and coriander with the mayonnaise and season to taste.

3. Warm the corn tortillas either individually in a pan or better still wrap them in a parcel and heat at 180°C/350°F/Gas Mark 4 for 5–10 minutes.

4. Heat the oil in a deep-fat fryer to 190°C (375°F). Dip each fish fillet in the batter, then cook for 4–7 minutes until crisp and drain on kitchen paper. This will depend on the thickness of the fish. Alternatively, fry in a deep saucepan with 5 - 7.5cm (2 - 3 inch) depth of olive oil.

5. Put a little lettuce on one half of a warm tortilla, top with a chunk of crispy fish, some chipotle mayo, guacamole, tomato salsa and a sprig of coriander, fold over and enjoy!

Fish Fingers with Garlic Mayo

recipe by:Darina Allen

A perfect after-school dinner

Servings

8

Preparation Time

 5 mins

Cooking Time

 10 mins

Total Time

 15 mins

Course

 Main

Cuisine

 Irish

Ingredients

• 8 pieces fresh haddock, hake or pollock cut into fingers 11.5 x 3cm (4 1/2 x 1 1/4 inch) approximately

• salt and freshly ground black pepper

• white flour, seasoned well with salt, freshly ground pepper and a little cayenne or smoked paprika (optional)

• For the egg wash:

• 2-3 beaten free-range, organic eggs and a little milk

• panko or dried white breadcrumbs

• To serve:

• crunchy little gem lettuce leaves

• For the garlic mayo:

• 225g (8oz) homemade mayonnaise

• 1-4 crushed garlic cloves (depending on size)

Method

1. Add the garlic to the mayonnaise and season to taste.

2. Heat the oil in a deep fry to 180˚C/350°F.

3. Season the fingers of fish with salt and freshly ground black pepper. Then, dip the fish, first into the well-seasoned flour and then into the beaten egg and finally coat evenly all over with the crumbs of your choice. Pat gently to firm up…!

4. Heat some olive oil or clarified butter in a wide frying pan over a medium heat.

5. Cook the fish fingers until golden and crispy on the outside and cooked through into the centre. Drain on kitchen paper.

6. I love to wrap them in crunchy little gem lettuce leaves, add a dollop of garlic mayo (aioli) or your mayo of choice and enjoy.

HOT TIPS

Midleton Farmers' Market

Head to Midleton Farmers' Market this morning as we celebrate 22 years of the Farmers’ Market (9am to 1.30pm). There will be a feasting table with lots of free tastes of delicious fresh produce and artisan foods from the stallholders. And bring the kids along – we'll have balloon artists and children's storytellers. Plus the amazing Cork Light Orchestra – a 30-piece pop orchestra led by the conductor and renowned musician Ilse de Ziah are coming to Midleton to delight us all. 

For more information, see Midleton Farmers Market on Facebook.

Summer Day Salads at Ballymaloe Cookery School on Monday, 22nd August.

We have amazingly productive glasshouses here at the cookery school. In Summer, they are bursting with produce – heritage tomatoes, cucumbers, beets, radishes, aubergines, zucchini, skinny green beans, fresh herbs...So let’s get creative. We’ll make 10 irresistible salads so invite a few friends around for a late lunch or early supper, crack open a bottle of a fizzy rosé. Enjoy the summer sun and share new flavours. Easy to prepare and super delicious.

For more information, see www.cookingisfun.ie

Groundswell Regenerative Agriculture Show and Conference

Progressive young farmers and growers take note. Groundswell Regenerative Agriculture Show and Conference (June 22 and 23) takes place at Lannock Manor Farm, Hertfordshire in the UK highlighting regenerative agriculture pioneers from across the UK and the wider world. The event provides a forum for farmers and anyone interested in food production or the environment to learn about the theory and practical applications of Conservation Agriculture or regenerative systems, including no-till, cover crops and re-introducing livestock into the arable rotation with a view to improving soil health.

For more information, see groundswellag.com