I'm going to try something new every week

[taxman]

How long do you cure your gravadlax?

 

Two days usually. I wrap it tightly in cling film, put it in the fridge in a dish and weigh it down with a couple of tins of beans.

[FIRETHORN1]

This thread seems to have died a bit of a death recently. Have we really all run out of new stuff to try??

 

I tried blue shark steak for the first time this week. I'd like to be able to say that I caught, cleaned and filleted it myself on a recent shark-fishing holiday in the Caribbean - but I actually bought it from Iceland......of all places! I got a 1kg pack of frozen blue shark steaks for £5. Can't go wrong at that price really, can you?

 

I was quite impressed. It's a firm, white fish, with a pleasant, mild-ish flavour and a texture that is quite dense - sort of more meaty than fishy.

 

As this was the first time I've ever cooked shark, I went "simple" and just pan-fried a steak of it with a bit of butter,olive oil, garlic and parsley, then ate it with boiled new potatoes and peas. It holds together quite well when cooking though, so I imagine it would be good to use in more robustly-cooked dishes, like fish stews, chowders, curries etc. I'll definitely buy blue shark steaks again!

[taxman]

This thread seems to have died a bit of a death recently. Have we really all run out of new stuff to try??

 

 

Apparently so. I tried bone marrow tonight on toast and it was lovely. Like mucky fat from t'olden days.

[taxman]

I've had rabbit before years ago but I've never cooked it. That changes today. Going to make a wild rabbit, leek and cider pie.

[chinaski]

Great find yesterday at Simmonites - Sea Urchins. They were only a pound each, I always assumed they'd be far more expensive. I took a look at youtube to prepare and was just going to cut the top and scoop out the roe, rather than prepare any dish. Oh the horror! When I cut one open it was full of dark black water and the other 2 weren't much better. I always thought the roe was meant to be orange in colour but these were dark grey. I was warned to marinade first as they has been "travelling" but urchins are like oysters; there's nothing in between fresh and 'should be binned'.

 

Bought some white asparagus from a small stall at the Sheffield Food Festival. I would have liked to have tried their wild asparagus but it had all gone. These were huge specimens and really tasty, but I still think the traditional green stuff has the taste edge.

[FIRETHORN1]

Halibut. That's been the "new" thing I've tried in this particular week

 

I've long been intrigued by what this particular fish might taste like and I finally tried it this week. I never see halibut on sale in supermarkets - or in the local cheapo frozen fish shops, so I decided to treat myself to an "on-the-bone" halibut steak from my local, old-fashioned (and now painfully-trendy and equally-painfully expensive) Wet Fishmongers.

 

On the plus side, I really liked the halibut. A nice, mild, meaty and tasty fish that holds it's shape well when you cook it. On the down side, it's so bloody expensive that I doubt I'll be buying it very often. What are the prices of halibut like in Sheffield? It's £24 a kilo where I live in South East London. The bit of halibut steak I bought on Saturday was just under 250g and cost me over a fiver- which is okay for the odd one-off treat, but not something I'd be able to afford to do... or even want to do... on a regular basis!

[taxman]

Halibut. That's been the "new" thing I've tried in this particular week

 

 

If you can find halibut tails they are considerably cheaper. The meat is just as nice and the big, gelatinous bones are really easy to deal with.

[FIRETHORN1]

Ta for the tip Taxman. I'll definitely keep my eye out for halibut tails in future. I really enjoyed this fish, but the price of it was bit steep for me.

 

Just out of curiosity, can you give me any tips on good ways to cook halibut? I was trying it for the very first time last week, so I played it safe and simply roasted it in a loose foil parcel in the oven, with a drizzle of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and a few torn basil leaves. If you know of any other tasty and interesting ways to cook it, I'd appreciate hearing your ideas.

[taxman]

Ta for the tip Taxman. I'll definitely keep my eye out for halibut tails in future. I really enjoyed this fish, but the price of it was bit steep for me.

 

Just out of curiosity, can you give me any tips on good ways to cook halibut? I was trying it for the very first time last week, so I played it safe and simply roasted it in a loose foil parcel in the oven, with a drizzle of olive oil, a squeeze of lemon juice and a few torn basil leaves. If you know of any other tasty and interesting ways to cook it, I'd appreciate hearing your ideas.

 

I like cooking either whole fish or large bits on the bone in a loose foil parcel like you did. A few herbs and a splash of wine to help it along. It's hard to overcook fish when done this way.

 

Roasting on a bed of potatoes and lemon is also good.

 

With fillets I usually just pan fry.

[taxman]

Can't remember ever having cooked lambs liver before.

 

Did it last night using this recipe.

 

Was OK, nothing to write home about and probably won't bother again.