Jam-basted fish on the braai
This is my interpretation of the way they like their fish on the West Coast, but instead of serving it with jam I used it in a baste. I used a carpenter, a variety of sea bream, which has firm flesh that is wonderfully succulent if cooked right. It was a rather thick fish so I cooked it for 10 minutes on each side. You could use snoek, yellowtail, geelbek (Cape salmon) or other firm-fleshed fish. If in doubt, ask your fishmonger for advice. They usually know everything about what they’re selling.
Ingredients
1 whole firm-fleshed fish, butterflied (ask a fishmonger to do this) 250ml apricot jam
50ml brown vinegar
1 tsp cumin seeds
1 tsp fennel seeds
A handful of fresh fennel fronds, finely chopped
Salt to taste
Cooking oil for basting the fish and oiling the grid
Method
∙ Toast the fennel and cumin seeds lightly and crush them.
∙ In a small saucepan, mix together the apricot jam, vinegar and toasted seeds and heat while stirring until the jam has melted. Let it simmer for a few minutes to reduce and thicken. Remove from the heat and stir in the chopped fennel fronds. Let it cool to room temperature.
∙ Salt both sides of the fish and oil the skin side well.
∙ Brush the baste generously over the flesh side of the fish. Leave about half of it for basting again when it is cooked.
∙ Oil the inside (what good would oiling the outside do?) of the grid very well. Place the whole fish skin-side down on one side, and fold the other down and fasten it closed. ∙ Braai skin-side down first, for 10 minutes. Turn and be watchful while the other side cooks, no more than 10 minutes, probably a little less. Brush the best of the baste all over the flesh side.
∙ Don’t be reticent about eating it. It could get messy.