Mar 12, 2020 | Main Course, Seafood & Fish, Starters & Small Plates
Thai Style Mussels These days the majority of mussels are rope grown and are available pretty much all year round. They are plentiful, cheap by comparison and take a damn good photo. Although strictly speaking they are farmed, it’s really more a case of...
Jan 25, 2020 | Main Course, Risotto, Seafood & Fish
Crab Risotto Crab makes a beautiful risotto, good enough to serve by itself with just a fork and a glass of bubbles on the side. One pot of mixed crab meat will generously flavour a risotto for two, the sweet brown meat disappearing into the creamy rice to make...
Dec 9, 2019 | Seafood & Fish, Starters & Small Plates
Tea Blackened Salmon with Orange Pickled Fennel This recipe delivers results that far exceed the level of effort required, which might I add, is about as minimal as it can get and yet it produces something far greater than the sum of its ingredients....
Sep 2, 2019 | Pickles & Preserves, Seafood & Fish, Starters & Small Plates
Mackerel with a Cucumber, Radish and Red Onion Pickled Salad This recipe works well as both a fresh, summery starter or a lighter lunch dish, served with a good sourdough and well chilled bottle of dry white. Spanking fresh mackerel needs little...
May 27, 2019 | Seafood & Fish
Seafood Paella There are many regional variations of paella, and just like their Italian cousin the risotto, a good flavoursome stock is the key. This seafood version uses the discarded prawn heads and shells to make a quick aromatic stock in just 30 mins. Have...
May 7, 2019 | Seafood & Fish
Plaice with Clams, Garlic and Parsley in a White Wine Pan Sauce Plaice are plentiful around the Isle of Wight and are readily available almost all year round, but all too often they are overlooked in favour of more fashionable, celebrity fish. Yet their...
Mar 29, 2019 | Seafood & Fish, Starters & Small Plates
Avocado Mousse, Cucumber Ceviche and Isle of Wight Crab This is a reworking of an old recipe I used to serve at the bistro, one I used to call avocado panna cotta, a concept that was possibly a step too far at the time; now I sling in a whipped egg white...
Dec 10, 2018 | Main Course, Seafood & Fish, Starters & Small Plates
Mussels with Chorizo, Garlic, Sherry and Parsley Mussels are far more user friendly these days now most of them are farmed; just a quick rinse and you’re off, whereas the wild ones can be high maintenance and for no extra gain. In truth, farmed mussels have had...
Nov 20, 2018 | Seafood & Fish, Starters & Small Plates
Although this is a relatively new dish on the menu, the flavour combinations are as old as the hills. Generally speaking I prefer a tart to be softly set with eggs and cream, generously filled to the brim and ram-packed full of choice ingredients. As luck would have...
Nov 19, 2018 | Seafood & Fish
Lobster Thermidor needs no introduction, not least from me. A dish renowned for its decadence, it owes its reputation to both its culinary heritage and more pertinently, the cost of lobster, which inevitably side-lines it to high days and holidays. Preparation of the...
Nov 14, 2018 | Seafood & Fish, Sides & Sauces
This is a special occasion sauce; rich and indulgent, it tastes like the sea smells; like the first lung full of holiday-by-the-sea air. I serve this poured over a hunk of pristine white cod along with a smattering of the mussels… a few still in their shells. By...
Nov 12, 2018 | Seafood & Fish, Starters & Small Plates
There have been several workings of this little salad on the menu over the years and it’s always popular – it reads like it tastes and does exactly what it says on the tin. Full of big flavours and zippy ingredients, it’s fresh, crisp and exciting to eat; lime,...
Oct 4, 2018 | Seafood & Fish, Starters & Small Plates
Although this is a relatively new dish on the menu, the flavour combinations are as old as the hills. Generally speaking I prefer a tart to be softly set with eggs and cream, generously filled to the brim and ram-packed full of choice ingredients. As luck would...
Oct 4, 2018 | Seafood & Fish
Lobster Thermidor needs no introduction, not least from me. A dish renowned for its decadence, it owes its reputation to both its culinary heritage and more pertinently, the cost of lobster, which inevitably side-lines it to high days and holidays. Preparation of the...
