GET FRESH - an Al Brown recipe for you to try

Further to my report of the launch here is a small excerpt from Al's introduction:

There are some wonderfully tasty recipes in Get Fresh and I implore you to give one or two of them a nudge. I trust the chapters, through the words, photos and food, give you a real feel for every single province. And I have also put together on CD a soundtrack of the original and diverse music that I feel in some way befits each region.

So put the disc in the player, puff up the cushions on your beloved couch, pour yourself a cuppa, with a bicky, and drift off into the culinary dream that this extraordinary country of ours offers up.

So with that in mind I have now had a chance to give a recipe from the book a nudge and the publishers have kindly agreed to let me reproduce it here for you to try if you wish. I can warmly recommend it.

Crispy-skin Snapper with Tomatillo Salsa and Spiced marrow

Serves 6

Step 1. Tomatillo Salsa

2½ cups tomatillo, cut into 1cm dice

2 red capsicums, roasted, peeled, seeded and cut into 1cm dice

¹⁄³ cup finely diced red onion

½ cup roughly chopped fresh coriander (leaves only)

1 tablespoon finely chopped fresh red chilli

1 teaspoon Spanish smoked sweet paprika

1 tablespoon cumin seeds, toasted in a dry pan and ground

1 teaspoon sugar

¼– ¹⁄³ cup lemon juice

¼ cup olive oil

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Combine all the ingredients in a large mixing bowl, seasoning to taste with salt and pepper. Add more lemon juice if needed. Refrigerate until required.

Step 2. Spiced Marrow

18 pieces rampicante marrow (or similar), cut into 1cm thick rounds

18 pieces zucchini, cut into 1cm thick rounds

2 tablespoons olive oil

1 tablespoon Spanish smoked sweet paprika

1 tablespoon cumin seeds, toasted in a dry pan
and ground

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Place the rampicante marrow and zucchini in a medium-sized mixing bowl. Coat with the oil
and spices and season with salt and pepper.

Heat a skillet over a medium heat. Sauté the vegetable rounds on both sides until coloured. Transfer to an oven tray and set aside.

 Step 3. To Cook and Serve

6 x 150g snapper fillets, skin on

cooking oil

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

Spiced Marrow

Tomatillo Salsa

2 lemons, cut into wedges

Preheat the oven to 150ºC.

Take a skillet or sauté pan and place over a medium heat. Take a sharp knife and score each snapper portion a couple of times just through the skin — this will help the fish stay flat in the pan, ensuring even cooking. Season the snapper fillets.

Add a little cooking oil to the pan then cook the snapper fillets in batches, skin side down, until golden and crisp. Turn and continue to cook the fillets until just done. Remove and keep warm while you finish cooking the other fillets.

Place the spiced marrow in the oven to reheat for 2 minutes.

Lay the cooked vegetables in the centre of your heated plates, top with your snapper, crispy-skin side up. Generously spoon the tomatillo salsa over the fish and serve with a wedge of lemon.

And because I love (understatement) broad beans three pics from the book featuring them: