For the quick and simple chef.
Citrus-cured snoek pâté (Makes 6 portions)
Serve with mosbolletjie toast, beetroot & rosemary pickled onions, coriander and an aromatic papaya curry. Pairs perfectly with the Lanzerac Chenin Blanc.
Ingredients
- 1 butterflied snoek (most fishmongers will butterfly the snoek for you)
- 1 small onion
- 1 red chilli
- 1 clove of garlic
- 20g of fresh ginger (peeled)
- 100ml olive oil
- 25g butter
- 60ml thick cream (1/4 cup)
- 60g cream cheese
- 15ml lemon juice
- Salt and freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Method
- You will need to cure the fish the night before you want to make/consume the pâté. Place the butterflied snoek in a container (ideally with an airtight lid) that will fit in your fridge.
- Combine all the dry ingredients along with the herbs in a mixing bowl. Zest the lemons and grapefruit and add the zest to the dry mix. Mix well before spreading the rub over the fish (both sides). Slice the citrus fruits and add roughly 6 to 8 slices of each fruit to the container. You can lie the fruit slices on top of or alongside the fish. Seal the container and leave in the fridge overnight or for a minimum of 8 hours.
- After the fish has been cured overnight, you can remove the container from the fridge and rinse all the curing ingredients off the snoek. Rinse the fish thoroughly or your final product may be overwhelmingly salty.
Place the fish skin-side down on an oven tray and drizzle with olive oil. Place the herbs and citrus slices you salvaged from the curing stage on one half of the snoek and fold the undressed side over (to cover the dressed side, like a little snoek sandwich). Score 3 deep cuts across the snoeak skin, drizzle with olive oil, and repeat on the other side. Bake the snoek in the preheated oven at 200 degrees Celsius for 20–25min.
