Post in collaboration with Iceland Foods
Punchy Asian flavours abound in this healthy, quick and easy fish dish which is syn free on Slimming World. Steamed Sea Bass Fillets with Soy, Chilli and Garlic using frozen fish cooked in a bamboo steamer over a wok. On the table in less than 10 minutes.
So much excitement to share in this post. Firstly a trip to London, secondly visiting an Iceland Foods flagship store, thirdly eating a feast of fish cooked seven ways by Iceland Head Chef Neil Nugent. But I've saved the best till last... I got to visit the Saturday Kitchen Studios! Check out little old me stood behind the self same kitchen counter where James Martin et al have stood. Alas I never got to try my hand at the infamous omelette challenge. I'll need to blag an invite on the show for real for that one.
Fangirl moment over, let me tell you the real reason for my visit to London. As regular readers will know I've been collaborating with Iceland Foods for almost 18 months now sharing the #PowerOfFrozen message (frozen food - not Anna and Elsa) and working alongside them to change perceptions of both frozen food and their brand. I'm the first to admit that prior to working with them I'd only ever visited at Christmas to stock up on party food and the ubiquitous Prawn Ring! To further enhance our partnership I was delighted to be invited to attend their 'School of Fish' day in London to find out more about the them, their products and plans for the future. Along with a group of nine other bloggers, vloggers and influencers I met the team from Iceland after having spent the night at the gorgeous Windmill Hotel. Fueled up on breakfast and coffee we were ready to be escorted to Iceland’s flagship Clapham store.
The store looked nothing like my local Iceland. If it wasn't for the branding I would have struggled to tell that I wasn't in the adjacent premium supermarket! An abundance of fresh produce, seriously impressive drinks selection and the swankiest freezers you ever did see. Over the last two years Iceland have worked hard to up their game, change perceptions and increase their product range, but they put their hands up to the fact that the majority of their stores don't as yet look the part. This one most certainly did and I sincerely hope that this fresh modern look will continue to be rolled out across all of their sites. On a walk round the store we were introduced to a selection of new and innovative products, best sellers and old favourites. I was particularly excited to see the elusive frozen avocado halves. These have proved so popular that alas they aren't available in all stores yet. I was also introduced to some new products all of which I've since bought in my local store. Rainbow Fries, Cauliflower Rice, Multi Greens Rice and Mac & Cheese Pizza. My facebook page went crazy for the pizza. But then again we do love a Macaroni Pie in Scotland.
From the store it was a short walk to Cactus Studios, home of the The Michel Roux Jr Cookery School and filming location for Saturday Kitchen. Here we were hosted by Iceland's Head Chef Neil Nugent who shared with us his culinary expertise and in particular the sentiment that if you want fresh fish - buy frozen. Now this may seem like a contradiction of terms but here's the Iceland explanation.
"Some ‘fresh’ fish displayed on the supermarket fish counters has previously been frozen or transported on ice. Tucked away in the small print you will find ‘previously frozen’. It often takes well over a week to reach the store, losing valuable nutrients and freshness in the process; whereas freezing is nature’s pause button so the goodness is locked in."
Makes sense when you think about it. If a fish is caught and frozen immediately (which often occurs at sea in factory boats) you literally stop the clock. The freshness is frozen in and nutritionally nothing is lost. However fresh fish on a supermarket fish counter could have been caught days if not weeks ago. There's something fishy going on there!
Preparing fish and seafood can be a wee bit scary but Iceland have done all the hard work for you. No worries about heads, tails, guts and scales, all you need to do is defrost.The best way is overnight in the fridge but if you are in a hurry and are going to cook the fish immediately there's a quicker option. Just watch the video below for full instructions. I'm definitely going to use Neil's tip of defrosting on a J-Cloth. For our lunch Neil cooked us a risotto using white and claw crab meat and Argentinian red shrimp. I'd already tried both products (the shrimp featured in my BBQ Steak and Shrimp Kebabs with Maple and Mustard Glaze) so I knew it was going to be a tasty dish. But it didn't stop there. To finish off the dish was a perfectly cooked fillet of Sea Bream with wonderfully crispy skin. In order to achieve this make sure you dry the fish skin really, really well.
Throughout the afternoon Neil took us on a voyage of discovery on the good ship 'School of Fish' to sail through his seven (seas) methods of cooking fish (enough of the fishy puns already?!) And so we watched, learned and ate...
1. Deep Fried Lemonade Batter Cod Goujons
2. Grilled Trout Fillet with Toasted Almond Butter
3. Baked Cod en Papillote
4. Poached Salmon served with Warm Potato Salad
5. Steamed Sea Bass Fillets with Soy, Chilli and Garlic
6. Pan Griddled Tuna with Salsa Roca
7. Pan Fried Sea Bream with Chermoula
Yes. We did also have dessert. Luxury Sicilian Lemon Tartlets. It all tasted just as amazing as it looked and it all came out of the freezer.
1. Deep Fried Lemonade Batter Cod Goujons
2. Grilled Trout Fillet with Toasted Almond Butter
3. Baked Cod en Papillote
4. Poached Salmon served with Warm Potato Salad
5. Steamed Sea Bass Fillets with Soy, Chilli and Garlic
6. Pan Griddled Tuna with Salsa Roca
7. Pan Fried Sea Bream with Chermoula
Yes. We did also have dessert. Luxury Sicilian Lemon Tartlets. It all tasted just as amazing as it looked and it all came out of the freezer.
The recipe I'm sharing with you below was my absolute favourite. So quick and easy to make yet packed full of fresh and punchy Asian flavours. And as a bonus if you are following Slimming World then my version is syn free! (Neil's original recipe used the juice of 1 orange which I have substituted for 2 Tbsp of lemon juice) If you like the sound of any of the other dishes above you can find the recipes for them all in an instore leaflet or online at Iceland Fish Recipes.
The video below gives a step by step run through of the Steamed Sea Bass Fillets with Soy, Chilli and Garlic. I have a small bamboo steamer basket so could only fit in a couple of fillets on a side plate. I think a visit to my local Chinese supermarket for a larger one is on the cards as I can see this becoming one of my new favourite ways to cook fish.
(Syn Free on Slimming World)
Serves Two
Ingredients:
4 Defrosted Sea Bass fillets
2 Tbsp of Dark Soy Sauce
Thumb sized piece of Fresh Ginger, grated
2 Garlic cloves, grated
1 Red Chilli - 1/2 finely chopped, 1/2 sliced for garnish
2 Tbsp Lemon Juice
1 Whole Carrot, Sliced into Match Sticks
2 Spring Onions, Cut into Strips
Fresh Coriander to garnish
Method:
Defrost the Seabass fillets and pat dry. Place them on a plate and then into a bamboo steamer.
In a bowl mix together the dark soy sauce, grated (a microplane grater works best for this) ginger and garlic, finely chopped chilli and lemon juice.
Add approximately 4cm of water to a wok, place in your bamboo basket and bring to a simmer.
Pour the soy dressing over the sea bass fillets and top with the prepared carrots and spring onions.
Place the lid on the steamer and allow to steam for 5-6 mins.
Garnish with chopped fresh coriander, sliced red chilli and serve immediately with steamed rice.
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Disclosure: This is a commissioned post for Iceland Foods. As always, all views expressed are my own.
Thank you for supporting the brands who make it possible for me as a passionate Scottish Food Blogger to continue to share my Edible Food and Travel Adventures with you. I’m super choosy who I work with and promise to bring you only the cream of the crop.
I wish we still had an Icelands near us, we did have one when we moved to our house 23 years ago but they closed not long after and now there's not one nearby. I've been really paying notice to their campaigns this last year and seen some really great feed back about their meat and fish in particular, not to mention good quality frozen vegetables and other products. Looks like you had a great day and much deliciousness!
ReplyDeleteThat's a shame. They have definitely upped their game in both offering and campaigns. On my way home from the event I spotted lots of their fishy adverts on the underground.
DeleteThis sounds absolutely delicious, I'm always wanting to eat more fish and this looks like a lovely fresh way to do it
ReplyDeleteIt's such a gorgeous fishy dish. Full of flavous but no fuss.
DeleteI can't quite believe what Iceland stock these days, shame my local one is one of the less salubrious ones... Looks like you had a fun day, and the sea bass looks lovely.
ReplyDeleteI totally hear you on that and hopefully the new look stores will be rolled out to all sooner rather than later and the ambiance will match the content of the freezers.
DeleteAhh, such a fun day! This recipe was definitely one of my favourites, so much beautiful flavour <3
ReplyDeleteIt's one of those where the sum is most definitely greater than the parts.
DeleteI felt sooooooo spoilt by all the good food that I had that day - plus I know actually cook fish the way it was meant to be cooked.
ReplyDeleteI will confess that I was in a but of a rut with fish and tend to always cook it the same way. Not now that I have the Seven (Seas!) Methods at my disposal!
DeleteI wish we had one of these up in Shetland! I keep seeing so many amazing recipes created with their frozen food! Gorgeous recipe, this and what a great experience for you to have!
ReplyDeleteWell you never know Elizabeth! My Dad actually emailed me a link the other day from the Stornaway Gazzette about and Iceland Store opening on the Western Isles so perhaps they are slowly advancing further north.
DeleteThis is our favourite way to cook sea bass too. The more ginger the better I say.
ReplyDeleteCan't believe I've been missing out on this method all this time - I shall go heavy with the ginger next time.
DeleteFirst - mac and cheese pie in Scotland is AMAZING. It's my go-to morning after, ahem, cure :) Second - that steamed fish basket looks lovely. And your trip to London sounds fab!
ReplyDeleteMacaroni Pie is just THE best Scottish food!
DeleteThat sounds like an exciting trip! We don't have sea bass where I live, but I can see that this recipe would be equally as delicious on other white fish. Great recipe!
ReplyDeleteYup, this technique of cooking would definitely work well with other fish.
DeleteOh I would not have known these were frozen even if you handed me the packaging! I was recently turned around on the freshness of frozen foods (particularly berries) - will keep an eye out for Icelandic Foods!
ReplyDeleteOnce you get your head around it, it's easy to see why Frozen is fresher then fresh.
DeleteThis sounds like an incredible trip...can't wait to see more.
ReplyDeleteSuch a great trip, we all learned so much at School of Fish
DeleteSounds like such a great experience. I love the Asian flavours you used, which I'm thinking would be great with any white fish. Delicious!
ReplyDeleteMake sure to use a good soy sauce and it will definitely taste great with any white fish.
DeleteI love the sound of this so quick so easy and so tasty. win win :)
ReplyDeleteI honestly couldn't believe how quick, easy and tasty it was when Neil demonstrated it to us.
DeleteOn Friday I went shopping in Iceland and their Korean, and Tennessee ribs were divine! Didn't buy fish though. Next time!
ReplyDeleteOh I haven't tried those ribs - yet! Thanks for the tip.
DeleteI really loved this recipe from the day of the event. The flavours are absolutely amazing, I will have to recreate it at some point.
ReplyDeleteIt has SO much flavour for being such a quick and easy to cook dish.
DeleteI love the pic of you at Saturday Kitchen! Looks like Iceland have loads of fab new products.
ReplyDeleteIt had to be done! Yup lots of great new products to try out.
DeleteSounds like you had a great day! This recipe sounds so good! Thank you for sharing with #CookBlogShare x
ReplyDeleteIt was a fantastic day. Learnt so much. Always great to pick up tips from a chef.
DeleteSounds like the best day out ever Claire and this dish looks incredible!
ReplyDeleteIt was such a fab day, well worth the long journey from Aberdeen to the big smoke.
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