Monkfish is a delicious, robust ‘meaty’ fish that doesn’t fall apart easily, so it suits being barbecued or roasted. It also mixes well with lots of different flavours, as can be seen in this this flavour-packed monkfish, mussels and pancetta skewers recipe. When cooking monkfish it can be tricky to get it right, so when the cooking time is up, insert a knife into the middle and check it’s piping hot when it comes out. Then let the fish ‘rest’ for five minutes before you serve it.
Ingredients (serves 4)
400g fillet monkfish
16 slices pancetta
12 mussels
1 onion
Dry white wine
Extra virgin olive oil
Parsley
Rosemary
Salt and pepper
Cirio tomato fillets
Method
Clean the mussels well and put in a covered casserole dish with 75ml water and 15ml of wine, then cook until they open. Remove from their shells, strain liquid and then retain it.
In a casserole dish, fry the sliced onion in olive oil for four minutes, then add the strained liquid from the mussels, the tomato fillets, the herbs and the seasoning. After two minutes, turn off the heat.
Cut the monkfish fillets into 16 pieces and wrap in pancetta, along with the mussels. Create four mixed skewers and fry in a pan with some olive oil for five minutes.
Pour tomato sauce over the skewers and serve.