Camorra Frank - MoVida seafood: Spanish culinary adventures

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CONTENTS

PESCADO Y MARISCO

FISH AND SEAFOOD

When our family arrived in Australia we literally devoured the landscape. My parents settled in Corio, a working class suburb of the industrial city of Geelong, an hour west of Melbourne. The family home is not far from the shores of Port Phillip Bay and is surrounded by the Barwon River catchment. (As I grew up I learned these were the traditional hunting grounds of the Wathaurung Aboriginal tribe.)

After a lifetime of living under the authoritarian rule of Franco, my father and mother celebrated their new-found freedom in Australia by catching and cooking every water creature they recognized. On weekends our family became hunters and gatherers and caught the same shellfish, crustaceans and fish that the traditional Aboriginal people caught in the waterholes, rivers and shores that surrounded my childhood home. I have memories of almost endless supplies of seafood that we caught ourselves.

To the north of my old home, in the Brisbane Ranges, it is still possible in a good year to net bucketfuls of yabbies (freshwater crayfish), which we cook in big pans over a hardwood fire. My family cooks yabbies as long as your hand in a tomato and olive oil base with garlic and mint. The contact of the shell adds so much flavour to the sauce and invigorates and enriches the dish. In the restaurant I always serve my prawns and langoustines in their shell, as this adds so much flavour.

When I serve our luxurious almejas a la marinera (), I am constantly reminded of those endless golden summers on the beach, swimming in the bay and helping dad dig for clams. Cooked with butter and peas, the sweet little clams fit into your mouth shell and all and are sucked clean of their rich sauce.

What I am most proud of is the fact that Australians, and the rest of the world, are finally becoming aware of the sweet taste of salt cod. Since the Middle Ages, these salted cod from the Atlantic Ocean have been traded across Europe. Follow the closely to enjoy the sweet, subtle and juicy flavour of salt cod.

We also use a lot of whole fish at MoVida because the flavour is in the skin and bones, but we cook it in a way that is easy to eat.

The big difference between my kitchen and a traditional Spanish kitchen is that I follow in the footsteps of the new generation of Spanish chefs, who trained in France and came back to Spain with a greater respect for Spanish produce. We all appreciate our great maritime tradition but realize that overcooking fish for hours doesnt bring out the best in the fish. Instead, we try to let the produce speak for itself. We use faster, hotter cooking times and take fish off the heat earlier, allowing the residual heat to cook the flesh to perfection.

OSTRAS CON SORBETE DE PEPINOS

FRESH OYSTERS WITH CUCUMBER SORBET

A freshly shucked oyster is full of salty iodine-rich liquid that tastes of the sea. Learning to open oysters is a simple skill that will improve the quality of your life. A quick flick of a stubby knife prises the shells apart to reveal the freshest of oysters. This simple dish matches the vitality and saltiness of the oyster with a sweet, green and slightly astringent cucumber sorbet, which leaves the palate cleansed and ready for the next morsel. It uses liquid glucose, a type of simple sugar available at some supermarkets, good food stores and chemists. To make things easier, we have included a surplus of ingredients to make the sorbet, so dont be alarmed if you have some left over. This makes a surprisingly good dressing for sliced tomatoes or, with a little salt sprinkled on top, diced mango! But it keeps well in the freezer the perfect excuse to buy more oysters.

INGREDIENTS

1 kg (2 lb 4 oz) Lebanese (short) cucumbers

about 300 ml (10 fl oz) liquid glucose

fine sea salt

24 freshly shucked oysters

1 kg (2 lb 4 oz) rock salt (optional)

50 g (1 oz) jar salmon roe

fruity extra virgin olive oil, to drizzle (optional)

TAPAS 24

METHOD

Top, tail and peel the cucumbers. Cut the cucumbers in half lengthways and gently scoop out the seeds with a teaspoon. Discard the seeds. Cut the cucumbers into rough chunks and pure in a blender for several minutes until completely smooth.

Measure the amount of cucumber pure. Add to the blender exactly half this amount of liquid glucose. Return the cucumber pure to the blender and blend for 1 minute. Season to taste with fine sea salt.

If you have an ice cream maker, make a sorbet following the manufacturers instructions. If not, use the following method. Transfer to a shallow metal tray and freeze, whisking every couple of hours, until the sorbet is frozen and has a smooth texture. Freeze for 5 hours or overnight. Soften in the refrigerator for 30 minutes before serving.

To serve, place the oysters on a layer of finely crushed ice or rock salt on a large serving plate or tray. Put 1 teaspoon of sorbet on top of each oyster, sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of salmon roe and drizzle with olive oil, if desired.

ALMEJAS A LA MARINERA

CLAMS IN VELVET PEA AND PARSLEY SAUCE

Almejas a la marinera can translate as sailors clams but, for some reason, we didnt sell that many when we first described them that way on the menu. They are in fact juicy little clams sitting in a rich, smooth sauce of peas and a little butter, which is sharpened with a splash of dry white wine.

Almejas a la marinera can also be used as a sauce to pour over a large pan-fried fish. Cook the fish in a frying pan for a few minutes each side then bake in a 180C (350F/Gas 4) oven for 810 minutes. Finally pour this lovely sauce over the top. That said, almejas a la marinera is just as good on its own.

INGREDIENTS

1.5 kg (3 lb 5 oz) clams (vongole)

90 ml (3 fl oz) olive oil

1 brown onion, very finely diced

5 garlic cloves, finely chopped

150 ml (5 fl oz) albario or other dry white wine

455 ml (16 fl oz)

225 g (8 oz) cooked peas

2 handfuls flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, chopped

80 g (2 oz) butter, chilled and cut into small pieces

MEDIA RACIN 6

METHOD

Soak the clams in cold water for 2 hours to remove the grit from inside the shells, changing the water several times. Drain well.

Heat the oil in a large, deep-sided frying pan over lowmedium heat and cook the onion and garlic for 10 minutes, or until soft and translucent. Increase the heat to high, add the clams and wine and toss in the pan for 1 minute. Bring to the boil then add the fish stock. Cover and return to the boil. Once boiling remove the lid and reduce the heat to a simmer.

Take out the clams that have opened and put in a bowl. Cover with foil and set aside. Continue simmering for a few minutes and remove the rest of the clams as they open. Remove and discard any clams that havent opened within 6 minutes of boiling. Increase the heat to medium and continue cooking the stock for 23 minutes until it has reduced by half.