The Confident Cook
Fillet of Beef in a Thai-style Marinade
I love easy dishes for the summer months. This eye fillet of beef is simple to prepare ahead, and the beef is given a tasty jolt with traditional Thai ingredients. Marinate overnight, cook ahead and serve cold, so that it can be cut into thin slices, accompanied by the cooling combination of cucumber and mint.
Fish Steaks with Ginger and Lemon
Fish cooked on the bone has a texture that seems to be missing when fish is boned and skinned. Try this recipe with any fish steaks such as hapuku, ling, bluenose, salmon, cod or kingfish. The gelatinous bones keep the fish moist and flavoursome.
Five-spice Beef Sirloin with Wasabi and Herb Gravy and Roast Vegetable Salad
I like to add lots of flavour when I roast a piece of beef, even if it is simply masses of herbs from the garden, or a simple spice rub like this. And to ring the changes from horseradish, the usual accompaniment to beef, try adding a little wasabi (now grown in New Zealand) to the gravy.
Flounder Fillets with Lemon and Herbs in Filo
I have many memories of flounder meals, for my fisherman uncle used to catch this delicate fish in the Manukau Harbour and bring bunches of them to us, swinging from a strip of flax. In my local fish shop I can buy tiny flounder fillets to make this easy starter. Prepare it ahead and cook in a hot oven for 10 minutes before serving.
Fresh Seafood Salad with Lemon and Ginger Dressing
This seafood salad gives a meal a spectacular start, or it can be served for a crowd as part of a buffet table. Cook all the components ahead and just toss together at the last moment with the piquant lemon and ginger dressing.
