A Seafood Summer!
Seafood on the barbecue is becoming most popular but hardly surprising given its versatility in comparison to sausages and burgers!
Fish tastes just great as it comes but there are plenty of ready made marinades available at this time of year that will add an extra dimension to your fish; alternatively you may wish to make your own, using simple ingredients such as olive oil, wine or lemon/lime juice with herbs and spices such as garlic or chilli.
Barbecuing is particularly good for whole fish, steaks and some shellfish, take a look at the box on the right to see our suggestions for perfect products for the barbecue.
To avoid overcooking seafood, you'll need your barbecue at a medium heat - hold your hand over the barbecue and if you can hold it there for about 4 seconds then it's about the right temperature. We recommend you oil the grill prior to cooking to prevent the fish from sticking.
If cooking steaks such as Tuna or Marlin they'll be fine placed directly onto the grill rack or you could wrap them in foil if preferred - be sure to marinate them for about an hour before cooking with a little olive oil or lemon juice to ensure they stay moist and succulent. To make your steaks go further, cut them into bite sized cubes and thread them onto pre-soaked skewers, alternated with vegetables such as mushrooms, cherry tomatoes or peppers. You may wish to baste them whilst cooking with a marinade to add extra flavour. Steaks will take about 3-4 minutes each side to cook, whilst kebabs will probably only need about 4-6 minutes depending on the size of the pieces. The easiest way to tell if your steaks are cooked is to place a knife into the thickest part of the steak, when it comes out warm to the touch they should be ready to eat.
When cooking whole fish, smaller fish such as Sardines will require a fish rack so that they can be turned easily or you may wish to use a shallow baking tray placed on to the barbecue. Larger fish such as Trout and Seabass can be wrapped in foil to retain all their juice and flavour, although this may detract from the smoky flavour so you may wish to use a fish rack - be sure to slice the skin diagonally and add olive oil, herbs and lemon slices or juice. Expect smaller fish to cook in 6-8 minutes, whilst whole fish may take up to 25 minutes depending upon the heat and size of the fish.
Shellfish is a definite must for that "wow" factor on the barbecue - for great but simple kebabs consider using Raw King Prawns, Roe-less Scallops, Scampi Meat or Squid alternated with your favourite vegetables and basted with sweet chilli sauce – a definite winner! You can also place items such as Crevettes, Langoustines and Shell on New Zealand Mussels directly onto the barbecue but be careful - all shellfish will cook in a matter of minutes and require careful watching!
For some simple but tasty barbeque ideas, please click on the links below:
Marinated Swordfish Steaks
Tuna Kebabs
Herby Citrus Fish
Glazed BBQ Fish Steaks
EZ Fish Steaks
Barbecued Scallops Wrapped in Bacon and Sage
Barbecued Squid Skewers
Divine BBQ Prawns
Cod Kebabs with a Fiery Glaze
Barbecued Citrus Monkfish
Or click here to see more seafood recipes
