eG Foodblog: nickrey (2011) - Classical/Modernist: It's all Jazz i

[nickrey]

Thai tonight. Going to make up a deep fried ocean trout, pineapple, coriander, cucumber and tamarind salad. This will be preceded by oysters in stout batter.

[nickrey]

First with the dinner posting. Am going to follow this with some foodie shots of shops.

Entree (appetiser) tonight was oysters in stout tempura batter. I thought this was an original recipe until I found out that Mark Hix in UK does a variant, and he has published his in a book!

The oysters were the ones I bought yesterday at the market. Ten oysters in all. Two were consumed fresh from the shell, which is actually how I prefer oysters.

I bought them unshucked as I was distressed seeing the lovely liquor being washed out in the cleaning process.

So shucking was the first task. This is what they looked like with the liquor still in place.

The batter was a simple tempura of 7/8 plain flour, 1/8 cornflour mixed with an equal quantity (or thereabouts) of icy cold stout.

Mix gently as the lumps add character.

The oysters were deep fried, taken out when golden.

They are served on a bed of wakame seaweed in their shells.

Main course was a Thai salad from a recipe by Martin Boetz who was trained by David Thompson so I'd suggest it has more than a bit of him in it.

The salad ingredients (missing kaffir lime leaves which were on the way from the shop as this was taken and the roasted, ground rice which was roasting).

The salad dressing was sweet, sour, salty, hot as is usual.

The ocean trout was dredged in fish sauce and deep fried until golden but still rare inside. The skin was removed and crumbled over the dish as a textural contrast. The ocean trout was broken into edible sized pieces and placed on the salad.

The final dish looked like this.

Ollie, who features as my avatar, and whom I swear is part bear, looked like this scoffing a bit of the ocean trout.

[nickrey]

I so long for a fresh fish market like the one you have down there.

It is excellent but there are also lots of other options given the plentiful nature of seafood here.

[nickrey]

I've taken some photos of local shops to give you all an idea of my local shopping haunts. The first is where I bought the fish for dinner tonight. Fine Fish is an offshoot of Martin's seafoods, which is one of the prime suppliers to fine Sydney restaurants. The fish shop sells some of the freshest fish I've seen outside of a jetty on the return of the boats. The ocean trout we had tonight simply had no fish odour at all and this is typical of the fish from here.

Here are some pictures from the shop. The range isn't anywhere near as great as the fish markets but the quality is outstanding on all that they have.

[Shalmanese]

The other (which is going to get screams from our NZ brethren who lay claims to its origins) is the Pavlova, which is a large mound of lamington topped with fruit and cream.

That should be meringue, not lamington .

And good lord is that some expensive fish...

[LindaK]

That dinner looks fantastic--thanks for sharing. I am having serious seafood envy. What a selection--and clearly it's impeccably fresh.

[nickrey]

The other (which is going to get screams from our NZ brethren who lay claims to its origins) is the Pavlova, which is a large mound of lamington topped with fruit and cream.

That should be meringue, not lamington .

And good lord is that some expensive fish...

Dang, started as meringue in my head, came out as lamington.

As you can see, the produce around here is good (and expensive).

[nickrey]

That dinner looks fantastic--thanks for sharing. I am having serious seafood envy. What a selection--and clearly it's impeccably fresh.

Thanks Linda

[Peter the eater]

I think most of us in the Northern Hemisphere are enjoying a good foodblog from down unda. I like the Fine Fish shop but I have to say, I don't like those prices. Are they typical or is it a high-end seafood boutique thing?

[C. sapidus]

nickrey, I am looking forward to this week very much as I always enjoy seeing what you cook up. I did notice David Thompson’s Thai Food sitting prominently on your bookshelf, so I am glad that you led of with a fish salad, one of my favorite summer meals.

For someone who already has a fair selection of Thai cookbooks, would you recommend adding one by Martin Boetz? If so, any one in particular?

Do you prefer Viet Huong fish sauce? I liked it, but usually choose a less-salty brand for maximum fish sauce flavor without over-salting the dish.

I am jealous of your seafood quality, but not the prices. I have heard that Australia and / or New Zealand have particularly enlightened ocean fishing policies. Do you think that drives up the price, or is the price more a function of location?

Can't wait to see what's next.

[Chris Amirault]

I also had Bruce's fish sauce question, Nick. In addition, where do you get your SE Asian ingredients? Can you find coriander/cilantro with roots still on? They're great pounded into submission and added to sauces.

[Shelby]

Those oysters look fabulous. I, too, prefer them raw, but the fried ones look delicious!

The seafood is expensive, but I'd pay it to get freshness like that.

Ollie is adorable!

[heidih]

I have the same mortar and pestle and use the same fish sauce

I love the idea of using the fish skin crumbled in the salad. Did it maintain crispiness or just add a textural contrast?

[nickrey]

I think most of us in the Northern Hemisphere are enjoying a good foodblog from down unda. I like the Fine Fish shop but I have to say, I don't like those prices. Are they typical or is it a high-end seafood boutique thing?

Hi Peter,

Yes it is a high end boutique and the prices reflect this. I'll definitely go back to the fish markets on Saturday and show you the more conventional retail prices.

[nickrey]

nickrey, I am looking forward to this week very much as I always enjoy seeing what you cook up. I did notice David Thompson’s Thai Food sitting prominently on your bookshelf, so I am glad that you led of with a fish salad, one of my favorite summer meals.

For someone who already has a fair selection of Thai cookbooks, would you recommend adding one by Martin Boetz? If so, any one in particular?

Do you prefer Viet Huong fish sauce? I liked it, but usually choose a less-salty brand for maximum fish sauce flavor without over-salting the dish.

I am jealous of your seafood quality, but not the prices. I have heard that Australia and / or New Zealand have particularly enlightened ocean fishing policies. Do you think that drives up the price, or is the price more a function of location?

Can't wait to see what's next.

Hi Bruce,

See the above comment about the prices.

Martin Boetz has two very successful Thai Restaurants, one in Sydney and one in Melbourne. They are both call Longrain which, not suprisingly, is also the name of his book in Australia (Longrain Modern Thai Food). In the US version, it is called Modern Thai Food with a subtext referring to Longrain. David Thompson wrote the introduction. The reviews on Amazon speak for themselves.

The dish that I made came from a cooking class he did rather than from the book.

Edited January 10, 2011 by nickrey (log)

[nickrey]

Do you prefer Viet Huong fish sauce? I liked it, but usually choose a less-salty brand for maximum fish sauce flavor without over-salting the dish.

I also had Bruce's fish sauce question, Nick. In addition, where do you get your SE Asian ingredients? Can you find coriander/cilantro with roots still on? They're great pounded into submission and added to sauces.

With regards to the fish sauce question, I tend to use Viet Huong as it is the preferred sauce for Vietnamese people here in Australia.

That having been said:

I do have options. Squid brand is one that a lot of the Thai cooks use here and the one on the right is one that was recommended to me in a cooking class I did in Thailand (which was 25 baht).

As to the salt question, and having done a number of Thai cooking courses, the whole point is balance. If you know your sauce is a bit more salty than others, add less in the initial stages. David Thompson and chefs he has trained taste their sauces continuously and tweak the taste so it is in balance. That sauce had lime juice, fish sauce, tamarind, and chilli powder. I didn't measure them, instead using approximations to the ones that Martin gave and balancing by adding an ingredient that seemed under represented. If you can get this right, you're Thai dishes will kick up a few notches straight away.

Edited January 10, 2011 by nickrey (log)

[nickrey]

Ollie is adorable!

Thanks Shelby, we like to think so.

[nickrey]

I have the same mortar and pestle and use the same fish sauce

I love the idea of using the fish skin crumbled in the salad. Did it maintain crispiness or just add a textural contrast?

Hi Heidi,

Yes it did. I actually took out the fish and removed the skin and it was not done to my liking so it went back in the deep fryer. It was crispy but was also skin-like; it's hard to describe. Anyway it had both crispness and textural contrast.

The other textural contrast was roasted rice that is fried in a pan until dry (not burnt, no oil). It is then ground in a mortar and pestle and added to the dressing.

[nickrey]

Just so you don't think I have the limited range of books shown in the previews, thought I'd show you my collection. We will be stepping outside Asia this week

[ambra]

I've been watching Masterchef Australia Season One which has made me want to take an Gastronomic vacation in Australia.

Glad to get another view besides the TV one, although it may cost me a couple of plane tickets!!

Edited January 10, 2011 by ambra (log)

[rarerollingobject]

Hi Peter,

Yes it is a high end boutique and the prices reflect this. I'll definitely go back to the fish markets on Saturday and show you the more conventional retail prices.

Confirmed - I live in Sydney too, and every time I walk into Martin's I have a mild heart attack at the prices, though the fish IS beautiful.

For reference, I get most of my fish in Sydney's Chinatown and the prices are roughly half. Though mostly the turnover is in whole fish, rather than fillets, and the whole fish are sparklingly fresh. Still pretty expensive compared to Nth America though.

Nick - I see you have Movida Rustica. Is it a worthy purchase? I love Movida with a passion - planning a trip to Melbourne in Feb to get a fix of that and Cutler & Co/Cumulus Inc - but I'd been considering this book and am curious if you'd recommend it.

Edited January 10, 2011 by rarerollingobject (log)

[ChrisTaylor]

If you haven't been to Melbourne in a while you might've missed the opening of MoVida Aqui. I'd rate it above the mothership.

[heidih]

Nick- forgot to ask what your deepfryer set up is? Just oil in a pot or dedicated fryer?

[ScottyBoy]

Been up at a farm the last few days, missing out of this wonderful stuff, awesome so far!

[nickrey]

I've been watching Masterchef Australia Season One which has made me want to take an Gastronomic vacation in Australia.

Glad to get another view besides the TV one, although it may cost me a couple of plane tickets!!

Make sure you ask for some tips on dining out when you come