Cooking Seafood

[Kizmet]

It is our nniversary next weekend and we were going to go to a seafood buffet lunch or a seafood restaurant but since i'm pregnant I need to know that the seafood is as fresh as possible plus I cant get a heck of a lot of seafood from the fish markets for the same price as it would cost for a seafood lunch. :o DH eats a lot!:laughing:

So...my query is do you have any good seafood recipes? How do you cook and prepare your seafood? Apart from grilling fish, peeling prawns and cooking garlic prawns I've never cooked seafood before

[KaM]

I havent cooked any but mum does it most saturday nights.

She buys the squid tubes (Cleaned ones hehe) from the fish market and slices them up, then she crumbs them (egg and breadcrumbs) and shallow fries them. Beautiful!

She also buys devained prawns from there and kind of butterflies them open, crumbs them too and makes her own prawn cutlets. Its so much nicer and fresher done at home!!

You could try buying a largish fish and cooking it in the oven wrapped in foil, with some butter and lemon and spices that go with fish. Comes out nice and moist and delish!

Maybe make your own prawn cocktails. Make up the sauce and put them in fancy glasses

[Kizmet]

ooooo i am craving seafood so bad now it isnt even funny!

Im going to get lots of prawns, not keen on calamari all that much but DH is so might try them, was thinking of grilling fish on the bbq (trying to imitate my fave seafood place -wont work)

Was thinking of doing something with balmain bugs, crab, lobster etc. Thinking of spending about $150 and inviting the family around to make it a big celebration. Figure they were there for the wedding why not the anniversary!

Absolutely flat out refuse to cook lobster as I will cry having to cook it alive! Anyone know what to do with already cooked lobster, crab etc? Do I flavour it, season it or anything like that? :o Am completely clueless about seafood!

[KaM]

Maybe a salad with the lobster and/or crab meat? or a risotto of some sort. That way the flavour is all the way through it!!

[KaM]

This one sounds yummy and fresh for spring!

Lobster Salad with Mango and Avocado

INGREDIENTS

6 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
Salt and freshly ground pepper
3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil


2 pounds cooked lobster meat, diced
2 ripe avocados, seeded, peeled, and diced
1 mango, peeled and diced
3 tablespoons chopped fresh tarragon leaves
3 tablespoons chopped fresh cilantro leaves
6 heads Belgian endive (preferably 3 red and 3 white)
Few sprigs of cilantro, for garnish

In a small bowl, whisk together lemon juice and 1/2 teaspoon salt until salt dissolves. Slowly whisk in olive oil until well blended. Season with pepper.

In a medium bowl, gently stir together lobster, avocados, mango, vinaigrette, tarragon, and cilantro.

Remove bases of endives and separate leaves. Arrange lobster salad in the center of a large serving platter and place endive spears around the salad. Garnish platter with cilantro sprigs.



Instead of the endive you can use the fancy lettuce leaves that are pretty hehe

[sueliz]

Moreton Bay Bugs, Orange Tomato And Basil (an Alistair McLeod recipe)

INGREDIENTS


12 small green Moreton Bay* bugs, halved and cleaned
50 ml blood orange infused avocado oil**
4 golden shallots finely diced
1 clove garlic, finely diced
2 vine ripened tomatoes, skinned, seed and diced (tomato pulp reserved)
2 oranges, juiced
1 tablespoon orange zest
2 tablespoons basil chiffonnade
Maldon sea salt and cracked black pepper
2 cups frissee lettuce (inner leaves of endive)
1 cup mixed herbs- chervil, coriander and parsley
30 ml vinaigrette




METHOD


Heat oil in a fry pan, fry shallot and garlic till soft. Add juice, zest and reserved tomato pulp. Bring to simmer.

Place bugs flesh side down. Cover and simmer for 3 minutes only. Remove from sauce and keep warm. Add basil and diced tomato. Season. Pour sauce into bowl plate. Place bugs on top.

Combine frissee and herbs, toss with vinaigrette and season lightly. Arrange on top of bugs.

* As distinct from Balmain bugs (well I am from Queensland)
** If you can't get this oil replace with olive oil

[punkbaby]

I love lobster on its own with a nice tartare sauce :) or seafood sauce usually i mix tomato sauce, lemon with some mayo and keep adding till it tastes right!

Why dont you get one already cooked and just break it up and sit it on a platter then let people help themselves

I love seafood as well but too paranoid to eat it LOL

[Kizmet]

Why dont you get one already cooked and just break it up and sit it on a platter then let people help themselves



Is that ok to do? Ive never eaten it myself-dont come from a family that is very keen on seafood apart from seafood salad you buy from woolies :o :laughing:

Do I just serve it plain and then have salads and things like that?

I just have no idea :o

[punkbaby]

When we went to the lobster cave in melbourne for dinner we ordered the lobster platter, it was all just broken up into peices (well they actually bought it out whole and broke it up in front of us) and they sat it on the platter we had a bowl of salad some dressings and also some fried calamari and muscles etc served with it! I just like plain lobster LOL i guess as you dont get to eat it much its nice to be able to just have it on its own

Not sure where you would get a cooked one from though

[Kizmet]

thanks punkbaby! you are always so helpful :hugs:

im planning on going to the fish markets really early in the morning on saturday and seeing what I can get then maybe come home with my stash of seafood and google my butt off :laughing:

[punkbaby]

Now i want some LOL the inlaws do the yummiest seafood spreads might have to sweet talk them i think

[Kizmet]

want to talk them into doing them and shipping them to me by any chance :laughing:

[punkbaby]

LMAO they are going to sydney in a fornight actually

wishful thinking would be nice they are greek so they know how to prepare it :)

[Kizmet]

I can postpone my anniversary a week :laughing:

[sasa]

Hey Kiz, Maybe you could have seafood cocktials - prawns lettuce avocado and seafood sauce for entree, then make a huge seafood rissotto.. You could serve the cocktails individually then have the rissotto in a huge pot on the table so that everyone could help themselves to some ( if you didn't want to serve for everyone) and have some yummy crusty bread... I love seafood rissotto and it really is easy! I have a great recipe if you like..
Good luck, so many decissions...

[Angelmist♥]

I've found the best thing to do with seafood is pretty much nothing:thumbsup:

I made killer bugs/lobster once though.Pretty much it was just shallots, lime juice, sweet chilli sauce and ginger warmed up in a fry pan then I just threw in the meat:chef:It was yummy!

an excellent seafood sauce too is -Mayo, tomato sauce, worcestershire sauce and wholegrain mustard. YUMMY!

[Kizmet]

sasa can i steal the risotto recipe from you?

ooo angelmist that sounds great! I'm going to have to give it a go :thumbsup:

[me270880]

i tend to invent most of my recipies, heres one that DH and i love

creamy garlic seafood

barramundi
squid rings
mussles
sea scollops
prawns
tub cream
garlic
white wine
throw it all in a frying pan simmer over low heat untill the fish falls apart.... serve over rice

[Kizmet]

oh that sounds absolutely beautiful! Thank you so much!:chef:

[sasa]

Definately, I am off to swimming lessons for DD this morning but will post it for you when she goes down for her sleep at lunch time. Catch ya soon

[Kizmet]

thanks hun :hugs:

[Angelmist♥]

Ooh I made a scrummy prawn fettucine last night if you're interested.You could add all kinds of seafood in there.

[Kizmet]

I'm interested! I'm interested!!:smiliedance:

[Angelmist♥]

It's so easy:chef:

Sautee some diced bacon, onion and mushroom in a pan with some butter. Cook your fettucine and drain while you're doing that.

To pan add (depending on how much sauce you want) 2 tins of carnation milk or cream, some chopped parsley and garlic.Add the seafood of your choice, once it's cooked add your fettucine and let it soak some sauce up and warm through.

Dish it up and throw some shallots and grated parmesan on top. YUMMO!

Ps- I added some cayenne pepper to ours last night which gave it a nice 'bight'.

[Kizmet]

we need a drooling emoticon :laughing:

That sounds amazing thanks so much!

[sasa]

Hey Kiz, sorry has taken me all day to get to this.. but here is the very simple yummo recipe!

Serves 3-4 people depending on how bigger eaters of course.. Recipe can easily be doubled or trippled etc.

You can add as much of whatever seafood you like really, I usually use a little bit of calamari/squid too.

Good luck, any questions just give me a yell :yes:


SEAFOOD RISOTTO

Ingredients
Butter 25 G
1 tbs olive oil
Aborio rice 250 G
Onions diced 40 G
1 large garlic clove crushed
Button mushrooms sliced 100 G
Chicken stock, approx 1 Ltr
Chopped parsley ¼ Bunch
White Wine 150 Mls
Green Prawns Shelled and De veined 10-12
Scallops, large with roe off 4-6
Fish Fillet, boned 200 Gm
Parmesan Cheese 100 Gm

Method:

1. Heat the stock in a medium saucepan until it is simmering and hold at that temp.

2. Add fine diced onion, garlic, oil and butter to a large saucepan and cook stirring for about 2 minutes or until onion is tender/opaque. Add rice and cook stirring for 1 minute, add wine and cook for 2 minutes stirring until wine is absorbed.

3. Reduce heat to low, Add stock about 1 cup at a time, cook stirring very frequently until all liquid has been absorbed. You must stir quite often or the rice will stick to the base and burn. Repeat this procedure until all stock has been used, the rice is al dente (still firm to the bite), and the mix is creamy in texture. Depending on the rice this usually takes approx. 20 min.

4. When the rice has reached this stage add the seafood, cut into large pieces, the sliced mushrooms and parsley. Stir until the seafood is cooked. If the mixture becomes a little too sticky during the cooking of the seafood you can always add a splash of wine, extra stock or water.

5. Serve immediately topped with shaved parmesan.:chef:

[Kizmet]

thanks Sasa!! Youre a champ !DH will love it!

[punkbaby]

AHh i just had a thought, what about those little volavants, could you make mini seafood ones?

[Kizmet]

Ive never made them before :o gawd I feel so naive!:o

[punkbaby]

just make like a white sauce, and put some seafood in it buy the cases from coles too easy cook them for about 15 minutes till the casing is crispy....make sure you cook the mixture first though so you know its cooked through

[Kizmet]

thanks so much :hugs: :hugs: :o