I firmly believe that if you eat a wide variety of food, which has not been mucked about with, and you heap the fruit and vegetables onto your plate, then you cannot really go far wrong with your diet?

Bit by bit for various reasons we are eating less and less animal products (this is discussion for another post) but fish is a weekly treat.   I make sure that the fish we eat is sustainable, preferably approved by the Marine Stewardship Council, for a guilt free and delicious meal.

In this easy sea bass dish, I simply fried the bass and served it on a bed of wilted greens which I had tossed in some olive oil infused with Asian spices.    Speedy, delicious and deceptively simple.  To make preparation even quicker you can make the infused oil the evening before.   I would serve this for a weekday supper, or visit the Chinese supermarket for a selection of Asian green veggies, and serve with some steamed jasmine rice and some top quality soy sauce for a slightly grander meal. Adjust spices and seasonings in the olive oil to your taste.

Like this recipe I am aiming for super speedy blog posts, so here we go.

Recipe: Sea Bass with Asian Greens

Serves 2

Ingredients

2 cloves garlic – smashed
Handful coriander – including the stalks*
2 dried chillies
2 star anise
Few strips of lemon zest
Slice or two of fresh ginger
Pinch cumin
1/4 cup / 60 ml light olive oil

Knob of butter
2 fillets of sea bass – mine were from the Saucy Fish company

Large pile assorted greens – cabbage, broccoli, pak choi, spring onions.

Salt and Pepper to taste

Method

Place garlic, herbs and spices into a small pan and cover with the oil and gently heat.  From time to time give the solid ingredients a good bash with a wooden spoon to extract as much flavour as possible.   Once infused strain and set to one side.

Meanwhile shred your greens, place in a colander and pour a kettle of boiling water over them to wilt them.

Melt the butter and a tiny glug of oil together in a frying pan on a medium heat.  Once hot fry the sea bass skin side down for 3 minute, flip and fry for another 2 or 3 minutes.

Once the sea bass goes in the pan heat the remainder of the infused oil in a wok and add the greens.  Toss together for a few minutes.

Serve the fish on top of the greens. Garnish with a slice of lemon and some shredded spring onion.

*I often free stalks when using the leaves for something else.

Many thanks to Fish is the Dish and the Saucy Fish company for my Sea Bass.   Here is another fuss free fish recipe – Baked cod with antipasti.

I have been on a bit of an emotional roller coaster this week,  and I have comforted myself with too much food, booze and coffee.     I have eaten so much that I have been almost unable to lie on my front, my usual sleeping position,  due my acquisition of a food stuffed, pot belly.  Booze and caffeine consumption have both further contributed to fitful sleep.  It is only Thursday and tomorrow I have a ticket for the Whisky Show.   I guess that there is no rest for a food blogger’s digestive system, so tonight I have tried to give my gut  a night off with a large bowl of greens.

Simply stir fried a heap of shredded greens with garlic, tamari and crunchy peanut butter.   Quick, simple, delicious and satisfying my craving for something healthy.   I used a mix of cabbage, pak choi, brussel sprouts & broccoli.   Most vegetables would work well, aim for a variety of textures and flavours.  cauliflower, kale, spinach, mange tout, green beans and bean sprouts would all be delicious.

To make a more substantial dish add a handful of noodles.

This is another contribution to my series of easy, economical and healthy recipes of what to do with the contents of the co-op “boxes” for the Food Co-ops and Buying Groups project run by Sustain – also part of the Making Local Food Work programme funded by the Big Lottery.

Stir Fried Greens with Satay & Tamari Sauce (serves 2)

Time taken: 10 minutes

Ingredients
2 cloves finely chopped garlic
Glug sunflower oil
Drizzle of sesame oil
About 6 handfuls of finely shredded green vegetables
1 tbs Tamari or soy sauce
1 espresso cup water
1 heaped tbs peanut butter

Method

Put the greens into a sieve and pour a kettle of boiling water over them.

Glug the oil into a large frying pan or wok and heat, add the garlic and stir until aromatic.   Add the greens and stir fry for a couple of minutes.

Chuck over the water and the tamari and allow to steam for a while.  Stir through the peanut butter.

Serve with a sprinkling of chilli flake if desired.

Sometimes the most simple dishes can be the most delicious.   This simple pasta contains only 4 ingredients which come together to make a delicious whole.    It is also fantastic cold, but I think that I would use broccoli in place of the pak choy. ( Whilst writing this up I discovered that pak choy and bok choi are different names for the same thing it is also know as Peking cabbage).

I have been putting soy sauce with my pasta for years; as a child I remember that my mother would make risotto with long grain rice*, which she would serve with  grated cheddar cheese and soy sauce.      Even now if I make an underwhelming risotto my first instinct is to reach for the soy sauce or tamari.

The spelt pasta, soy sauce and olive oil used were all review samples from Clearsping  given to me at the Allergy and Gluten Free show.    I love the semi whole spelt pasta, it has a subtle nutty flavour and because it is made using traditional bronze moulds has a rough texture that the sauce clings to.  I tried some cold at the show and it would be great in salads and for packed lunches.   The tamari is wheat free and double strength and intensely delicious.     The extra virgin olive oil was also delicious, fruity and peppery without being too strong.   All Clearspring  products are vegan and  GMO free and the majority are fully organic.   The company has a commitment to ethical trade and supports sustainable farming practices that help local communities.

I am sending this to  for this Friday’s Presto Pasta Night hosted by The Sweet Kitchen unbelievably this week it is PPN number 168!

* Risotto rice was not to be found easily or cheaply in the UK in the 1970s.  I also remember that one of my Uncles and Aunts used to go to Paxos every year bringing back cans of olive oil which were given as Christmas presents, the contents of which we carefully rationed to last the entire year.   I can still picture the golden can printed in green, black and white with its precious contents within.   Similarly to the risotto rice, olive oil was not readily available and most likely to be found in a pharmacy.

Asian Pasta with Pak Choy (serves 2)

Pasta for 2 – I use about 3oz / 75 g each
Good glug olive oil
Good glug soy sauce or tamari
1 head pak choy

Start cooking the pasta.   Whilst it is boiling roughly chop the pak choy and place in a sieve.    Pour a kettle of boiling water over it to wilt it.    When pasta is done, drain and return to the pan with the pak choy and olive oil.   Add the soy sauce / tamari to taste.   I sprinkled some chilli flake on mine.

Thanks to Clearspring for the free product samples used in this recipe.