We hope that everyone will be tuning into UTV at 8.00pm to see Kilkeel and Mourne Seafood Cookery School on Paul & Nicks Big Food Trip. Paul Rankin and Nick Nairn will be cooking up a storm in our kitchen using all local produce such as Lamb from Cunningham’s Butchers, New Potatoes from Mourne Veg and Prawns & Brill from Kilkeel’s fish market. For a list of ingredients and recipes click on this link http://www.u.tv/bigfoodtrip . If you can watch it tonight catch it on the UTV player. Happy Viewing

Ingredients
4 x 225g (8oz) plaice, witch, megrim or lemon sole fillets, skinned

Salsa:
1 small mango, peeled and diced
1 red pepper, deseeded and finely chopped
8 cherry tomatoes, quartered
1 red onion, finely chopped
pinch of sugar
1 red chilli, deseeded and finely chopped
2 x 15ml spoon (2 tablespoons) rice vinegar
grated zest and juice of 1 lime
1 x 5ml spoon (1 teaspoon) extra virgin olive oil
salt and black pepper
Serves 4
Nutritional Values Per Portion (Approx) 259 Kilocalories;
43g Protein; 5g Fat; 12g Carbohydrate; 2g Fibre.

Method
For the salsa: mix together the mango, red pepper, tomatoes and onion, add the sugar, chilli, vinegar and the zest and juice of 1 lime and the oil.  Mix thoroughly and leave to stand for 30 minutes.
Lay the fish on a board skinned side up and halve lengthways.  Pile the salsa on the tail end of the fillets.  Fold the fillet in half, season and place in a large shallow pan.
Cover and cook on a low heat for 7 -10 minutes.  Remove the cover, and cook uncovered for a further 3 minutes.
Serve with wild and white rice garnished with fresh thyme.

Fritto misto

At the fishmongers:

Just buy a selection of small whole fish and fillets or steaks of the freshest fish on the counter. Include a bit of shellfish too. The more variety of fish that you are able to buy, the more interesting your fritto misto will be – but even if only two or three species are available, you will still enjoy the simplicity of this recipe. Allow about 300 – 400 grams of fish per person. If you are buying fillets, allow around 175 grams.  To save yourself a job, ask the fishmonger to scale and gut all of the fish, but leave the heads and tails on unless you would really prefer not to.

Per person:

a pinch of sea salt

300 – 400g mixed fish (see above)

250 ml milk

a couple of handfuls of good strong white flour

vegetable oil

2 lemons, cut into quarters

a couple of tablespoons of chopped parsley.

Method:

Sprinkle a little sea salt over the prepared fish, then dip the fish, one at a time, into the milk and then into the flour, shaking them to remove any excess flour.

Cover the base of a large, wide frying pan with about a centimetre of vegetable oil and heat to around 150 – 160°C, or until a cube of bread turns golden in 6 -7 seconds when thrown into the oil.  Fry each piece of fish until crisp and golden on each side. If you have any larger pieces of fish, remove them from the pan, place them on a roasting dish and finish the cooking in the oven, pre-heated to its maximum. But you will not need to do this if you select smaller fish.  Drain on kitchen paper before serving.

Lay the fish in a single layer on a white plate, sprinkle with parsley, add a squeeze of lemon juice and maybe a drizzle of good olive oil. Serve

Mixed Fish Kebabs

Ingredients:

8 scallops

250g monkfish, cubed

8 whole raw prawns

8 rashers of thin streaky bacon

olive oil

Method:

Preheat the barbecue or grill to a moderate heat

Stretch each rasher of streaky bacon with the back of a knife and wrap around the scallops.

Thread the wrapped scallops, monkfish and prawns alternately onto a metal skewer – do not squash together – brush with olive oil. (Note: if using wooden skewers, soak in water for 20 mins).

Place the filled skewers onto barbecue, turning once.

Serve with barbecued/roasted vegetables or salad and Ciabatta bread.

We also have a Vintage Soya Teacup candle workshop on Thursday 12th April from 9.30am – 11am at £15 per person taking place in our new ‘Craft Cafe’. Learn how to make your own beautifully scented candle in a teacup. While your candle is solidifying enjoy a cream tea while you wait. Only 8 spaces on this class so book early to avoid disappointment.

Both classes can be booked by phoning 028 417 62525.

Limited spaces left!  Don’t delay……….book today!