5 tasty recipes for lesser-known fish

2.) Grilled bream with mustard and tarragon sauce, asparagus, and peas

At one time, American fishermen would be disappointed to find bream, more often known in the U.S. as porgy or sea bream, on their lines while trying to catch fluke or hake. With its sweet and delicate flavor – some liken it to red snapper – opinion is changing about using the fish in every culinary circumstance, from beach casual nights in to fine dining.

Bream has become a favorite of chef Nathan Outlaw, who runs an empire of seafood-themed restaurants in the U.K. Now a much-lauded chef with four Michelin Stars to his name, Outlaw has become a passionate advocate for cooking with sustainable seafood.

In Australia, bream is often found on beach barbecues stuffed with lemon wedges, wrapped in foil and nuzzling up next to some plump prawns or lobster. In this recipe, Outlaw takes the not-too-lean and not-too-oily fish  up a notch with a stunning yet simple dish, with a rich and tangy sauce to highlight its delicate flavor.

Grilled bream with mustard and tarragon sauce, asparagus, and peas (Serves 4)

The firm flesh of bream in Outlaw's recipe is complemented by the sweet flavor of cream-enriched tartare-style sauce flecked with potatoes, asparagus, lettuce and peas. You can buy two large, whole fish if you want to fillet them yourself, or ask your fishmonger to do this for you.

Ingredients

• Grilled bream
• 4 sea bream fillets, 100g each
• salt
• 1 dash of oil

Sauce

• 3 1/2 oz. of fresh peas
• 3 1/2 oz. of Maris Piper potatoes
• 1 egg yolk
• 1 tsp cider vinegar
• 1 tsp English mustard powder
• 1/2 pint of olive oil
• 3 1/2 flu oz of fish stock
• 1 2/3 fl oz of double cream
• 1 baby gem lettuce
• 2 gherkins
• 2 tsp tarragon, chopped
• salt
• freshly ground black pepper

To plate

• 16 asparagus spears
• 1 2/3 fl oz of olive oil

Method

1. To start the sauce, bring a saucepan of salted water to the boil and add the peas. Cook for 1 minute, then lift out with a slotted spoon and refresh in cold water. Set aside to drain. Peel and dice the potato into 1/2 in cubes and add to the boiling water. Cook until just tender, then drain and set aside to cool.
2. Whisk the egg yolk, vinegar and mustard together in a bowl for 1 minute, then slowly add the olive oil – don't add the oil too quickly, otherwise the mixture will split. Season with a little salt.
3. Gently heat the stock in a saucepan. Stir the cream into the mayonnaise then whisk in the hot fish stock a little at a time until the sauce is a coating consistency. Set aside
4. To cook the fish, preheat the grill. Season a baking tray with salt, drizzle over a small amount of olive oil and lay the bream fillets on top. Grill for around 6 minutes, then remove from the grill set aside for 2 minutes – the residual heat will finish cooking the fish as it rests
5. Meanwhile, bring a pan of salted water to the boil. Peel the asparagus spears and blanch them for 2–3 minutes, depending on thickness. Drain and refresh
6. To finish the sauce, remove the skins from the peas, finely shred the lettuce and chop the gherkins. Place the sauce in a saucepan over a medium heat and stir in the lettuce, peas and potatoes. Allow to heat through for a minute, then stir in the gherkins and tarragon. Season to taste
7. Ladle the sauce into four warm serving bowls and lay the fish on top. Garnish each portion with four asparagus spears and a drizzle of olive oil

Recipe by Nathan Outlaw, courtesy of Great British Chefs.  Visit the Great British Chefs website for more fish and seafood recipes.