this is a frickin knock out. fear of empty plate kicked in after the first bite.
the beurre blanc elevates this to next level awesome. dont be put off by the name of the sauce – it sounds fancy, BUT follow the below directions and its easy – you cant stuff it up.
while the sauce is creamy and indulgent, its paired with the fresh broccoli, roasted fennel and kale so it doesnt get sickly or too much. its all just a match made in …. heaven.
serves 2
for the monkfish
2 fillets monkfish
salt
25gm butter
2 tablespoon oil (avocado or rapeseed)
for the broccoli
1 head broccoli, cut into even sized florets
3 tablespoons melted butter
1 tablespoon oil (avocado or rapeseed)
4 garlic cloves, crushed
salt
for the fennel
2 fennel bulbs
2 tablespooon oil (avocado or rapeseed)
salt
for the kale chips
4 leaves curly kale, stem removed
2 tablespoon oil (avocado or rapeseed)
salt
for the beurre blanc
1/4 cup dry white wine
1/4 cup white-wine vinegar
2 small shallots (or 1 large), finely chopped
1/3 cup heavy cream
1 cup chilled butter, cut into cubes
salt
pre-heat oven to 180deg.
prepping the garlic roasted broccoli
add the crushed garlic to the melted butter. toss through the broccoli florets with the oil and salt.
place on a baking tray and set aside until ready to cook.
prepping the roasted fennel
slice the bulbs about a centimeter wide. break the layers apart and then toss through the oil and salt.
place on a baking tray and set aside until ready to cook.
for the beurre blanc
place the sliced shallots in a small saucepan with the white wine and vinegar. bring to the boil and reduce until thickened and syrupy.
add the cream and salt and bring to a simmer.
while whisking the sauce add a cube of the chilled butter, one at a time. the sauce will thicken. dont stop stirring until all the butter has been incorporated.
leave until ready to serve.
for the kale chips
toss the kale leaves in the oil and salt. place on a baking tray and place in the oven for 2 minutes. remove, toss and place back in the oven for another 2 minutes. if it hasnt yet gone crispy leave it in a little longer. watch it though! it burns quickly.
remove the kale to a board or paper towel until ready to serve.
cooking the broccoli and fennel
place both baking trays in the oven.
roast for 10 minutes and then toss the vegetables.
place back in the oven for another 10 minutes or so. watch them – you want them to get slightly caramelised around the edges. thats where the flavour intensifies!
while roasting, cook the fish.
for the monkfish
heat fry pan to high.
oil the fish on both sides and season with the salt.
add a little oil into the hot frypan with the butter. once melted, add the fillets of fish. while the fish is frying, using a large spoon, spoon the melted butter on top of the fish fillets over and again.
after a few minutes, turn the fish, and continue to spoon the butter over the fish. once nicely browned on both sides, place the fish in the oven to finish off the cooking.
length of time in the oven depends 100% on how thick your fish is. you want to cook it til opaque.
to serve
place the broccoli and fennel on your serving plates. lay the fish over the veges. top with the kale leaves.
serve with the beurre blanc.
ReplicATE It. 