Blackened Mirror Dory with Lime Butter
This recipe is a version of the popular Cajun blackened redfish from New Orleans. Don’t be put off by how dark the cooked fish looks, it tastes great, and the lime butter gives it a real lift.
Serves 4
4 x 200g mirror dory fillets, skin off, bones removed
½ cup vegetable oil
4 lime cheeks, to serve
Green salad, to serve
Cajun Spice Mix
1 tablespoon fennel seeds
1 tablespoon coriander seeds
1 tablespoon cumin seeds
½ tablespoon dried garlic
4 dried chillies, coarsely chopped (see notes)
½ tablespoon salt flakes
½ cup sweet paprika
Lime Butter
1 lime, zest grated, juiced
125g butter, softened
1 teaspoon salt flakes
Make Lime Butter: combine all ingredients well. Roll butter into a cylinder shape in plastic wrap, refrigerate until firm (see notes).
Make Cajun Spice Mix: dry roast all the seeds for a few minutes, until aromatic. Grind to a fine powder in a spice grinder. Add garlic, chillies and salt and grind until fine, then stir in paprika.
Place spice mix on a flat plate. Pat the fish dry with paper towel. Brush both sides with vegetable oil and roll in the spice mix, ensuring they are evenly coated.
Heat remaining oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Cook the fish for 4-6 minutes each side, until spices begin to blacken and the flesh flakes easily when tested with a fork.
Put fish on plates, place a thin disc of Lime Butter on top of each one, garnish with a lime cheek and serve with green salad.
Notes: Remove seeds from chillies before chopping for a milder flavour. This recipe only uses a small amount of the Lime Butter, the remainder can be frozen and pieces cut off as needed to melt over fish or vegetables. This recipe can also be cooked on a BBQ or char-grill plate.
Alternative Species: Leatherjacket, morwong, redfish, snapper or any of the bream or dory species.
For information on Mirror Dory, click here >
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