Fish braai on weekends

Savouring fresh fish cooked on a braai is certainly one of life’s little treasures, and apart from being utterly delicious, fish is easy to prepare and really good for you to boot. Why not host a fish braai at your home for your friends and family?

The splendid smokey flavour of braaied fresh fish is lip-smackingly scrumptious! Knowing that you caught the fish yourself makes the triumph of flavour that much more palatable, but luckily for the many of us who don’t fish, there are many outlets where you can buy delicious fresh fish. There is a common misconception that cooking fish on the braai is difficult, but in fact it is not, it is really quick and easy to do.

Choosing the fish

The first thing you need to realise is that not all types of fish are suited to being cooked on the braai. Ideally, you will need to choose firm fish, such as salmon, kingklip, red roman, pilchards, yellowtail, fresh tuna and sardines are all delicious grilled on an open flame. When buying your fish, ensure optimum freshness by choosing ones that have a fresh, pleasant sea smell, make sure that their flesh is firm (it should bounce back when touched), and that their eyes are bright and not sunken.

Braaing strategy

One of the main tricks is to prevent your fish from sticking to the grill and falling apart. The main cause of fish sticking to the grill and falling apart is that the grill is not hot enough when the food is placed on it. It needs to be hot enough to produce an aromatic sizzling sound when the fish first touches it, and this heat must be maintained throughout the entire cooking process. Also, keeping your grill completely clean will reduce the chances of your fish sticking to it. Frequently, food particles get stuck on the surface of the grill and these are areas that your fish will stick to.

Wrapping your fish in foil is another way of preventing it sticking to the grill. You can add various flavourings, such as lemon juice, butter and maybe a bit of parsley, to the fish and wrap it up in the foil, which will ensure that the fish remains moist and that the flavours seep into the fish during the cooking process. It is much more difficult to prevent drying out when the fish is placed directly on the grill. However, keep in mind that using foil will prevent some of the smokey taste of the braai from penetrating the fish.

The fish basket is an innovative invention – much like the normal braai grill that sandwiches meat, the fish basket is shaped like a fish, is oval and holds an entire fish. The main advantage of a fish basket, is that you can flip the entire basket without breaking the fish, instead of attempting to flip it manually, which can be a bit tricky. When it comes to flipping fish, bear in mind that much like a good stake, fish should only be flipped once. If you are cooking small fish, like sardines, then it is advisable to take a wire oven rack and lay it across the top of the grill, creating a cross-hatch of small square holes.

Cooking it

Fish needs a slow, gentle medium to low heat, and generally doesn’t need a lot of time to cook. As a result, people often tend to over-cook fish, causing it to dry out rather than remain deliciously juicy. To make sure that you don’t over-cook your fish, ensure that it is not frozen and is at a cool temperature, but not too cold – just above room temperature is perfect. Try not to use frozen fish, as it loses a lot of the subtle texture and taste when frozen. You can judge whether the fish is cooked by inspecting how easily the fish comes away from the bone, and for filleted fish, looking for the telltale white liquid that oozes out of cooked fish.

To allow the heat to permeate the fish evenly, it is advisable to slice diagonally across the middle section of the fish, and to make a few slices of about 2cm apart. You can stuff flavouring, such as lemon and herbs, into these slices, and then oil the fish to further prevent it from sticking.

To flavour your fish – there are a number of various choices; it all depends on what you feel like. You can marinate the fish in a standard acid (lemon juice, white wine), olive oil and flavourings like herbs, onion, garlic, ginger, and so on. Whole fish can be stuffed with almost any combination of lemon leaves, flat-leaf parsley, lemon slices, spring onions, lemon grass, fennel, thyme, garlic and dill are all popular choices. Closed braais can enhance the smokey flavour of braaied fish, or you can further add to the flavour by wrapping it in banana leaves or lemon grass (and then optionally in foil) and cook it directly on the coals for a more exotic touch. Regular basting is essential to keep the fish moist, unless you are cooking it in foil, and it can be made using lemon juice, butter and other flavourings such as Cajun, pesto, Thai sweet chilli sauce, apricot jam, and tapenade.

For a healthy and delicious choice – make a fish braai a must-do this summer!  - Antonella Dési 

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