Asian barbecued snapper

This is a great way to make the most of the excellent seafood we have in Australia. The aromatic coconut sauce compliments the fish so well and gives it a real South East Asian twist. If you didn’t want to use a whole fish, you could use fillets, or serve the sauce and salad with barbecued Aussie prawns.

Credit: Outback Gourmet

• serves

  4

• prep

  10 minutes

• cook

  30 minutes

• difficulty

  Easy

Ingredients

• 1 whole snapper (about 1.2 kg), removed from fridge at least 30 minutes before cooking
• 270 ml can coconut milk
• ½ tsp grated fresh turmeric (or use ground turmeric if fresh is not available)
• 3 kaffir lime leaves, roughly torn
• 2 sticks lemongrass, roughly torn
• 2 cm piece of ginger, sliced
• 1 lime, zest and juice
• 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
• 1 corn cob, cut in half
• 1 large handful mint leaves
• ½ green chilli, thinly sliced
• Handful of coconut flakes, toasted
• Pinch salt

Instructions

1. Preheat a barbecue to medium-high heat.

2. Make 3-4 incisions on each side of the fish.

3. Add the coconut milk, turmeric, kaffir leaves, lemongrass, ginger, lime zest and a pinch of salt, to a pan, then cook over a medium heat for 5 minutes to allow the flavours to infuse.

4. Drizzle oil over the corn and fish and season with a good pinch of salt. Place corn and fish on the barbecue. Cook corn until slightly charred all over then remove and cool slightly. Cook the fish for 25-30 minutes, turning half way through the cooking process. (Note: cooking time will differ depending on the size of fish).

5. Once the corn is cool enough to handle, use a knife to remove kernels. Add to a bowl with the mint, chilli, coconut flakes and a drizzle of olive oil. Gently toss ingredients together.

6. Once the sauce is thick and rich, remove from the heat and stir through the lime juice. Strain into a jug.

7. To serve, portion fish and serve with a generous amount of sauce, garnished with corn salad.

Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.