Monkfish with Bacon and Red Wine Sauce
Photography by Aaron McLean.
Choose a red wine for this dish that you would be happy to drink yourself.
Serves: 6
INGREDIENTS
Sauce
2 cups red wine
1 tablespoon olive oil
knob of butter
1 small onion, peeled, thinly sliced
2 cloves garlic, crushed
150 grams thick cut bacon, sliced ½ cm thick batons
1 teaspoon finely chopped rosemary
1 bay leaf
1 cup chicken stock
2 tablespoons good balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon soft but not melted butter
1 tablespoon flour
Fish
6 x 200 gram portions monk fish or other firm fish
seasoned flour
2 tablespoons olive oil
knob of butter
To finish
hot, cooked curly kale, rainbow chard or spinach
METHOD
Preheat the oven to 200°C.
Sauce: Put the wine in a saucepan and boil until reduced by half. Heat the oil and butter in a sauté pan and cook the onion, garlic, bacon, rosemary and bay leaf until the onions are soft. Season and add the reduced red wine, chicken stock and balsamic vinegar and simmer until reduced by half. Mash the butter and flour together to make a smooth paste*. Whisk in a small piece at a time until the sauce thickens and is glossy. Simmer for 2 minutes to cook out the flour. Season.
Fish: Heat the oil and butter in a sauté pan. Dust the fish in flour, shaking off the excess. Cook on all sides until golden and just cooked in the centre.
To serve: Arrange the greens on serving plates and top with the sliced monkfish. Spoon over the sauce.
*The French term for this is beurre manié, or kneaded butter, which is used to thicken soups and sauces.
Menu: Serve with Twice Baked Raspberry and Lime Soufflés to finish.
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