Monkfish with stir-fry veg (PALEO)

Light, summery main course: veg and fish

Monkfish may not be the best looking fish in the sea but certainly one of the tastiest. I first came face to face with one in Dalmatia, a good few years ago. I am always curious when in comes to new food, so despite the look I went to try one, and I loved it. I love the texture and the finely tuned taste of this fish. There are concerns with the fishing methods (destruction to seabed ecosystems and wastefulness - Demersal otter trawls commonly throw away over 30% of their catches, by weight) so I am using monkfish as a treat, not too much and not too often. Does this still make me love my belly more than our seas?

To make this Mediterranean feast of colours you will need (serves 2 to 4):
450 g monkfish tails (one big or two smaller ones)
1 juicy lime
3 small-medium onions
2 tbsp coconut oil
1 cm fresh ginger
2 pointed green peppers
2 pointed red peppers
6 small courgettes (thin, young)

olive oil, and
small bunch of flat leaf parsley, to serve

1. Peel, halve and slice the onions into thin wedges. Rinse and halve the peppers, discard the seeds and the soft inner ribs, then slice. Rinse the courgettes and slice. Peel and thinly slice the ginger.
2. Rinse the fish, cut the tail (tails) along the bones, discard the bones and cut the flesh into bite sized pieces.
3. Plate the fish into a stainless steel pan with a lid. Squeeze the lime onto the fish pieces, add a wee splash of water, cover with a lid. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to minimum and gently simmer for 8 mins. All the water should be evaporated/absorbed/incorporated but the fish should stay juicy and moist.
4. In a large pan melt the coconut oil, add the prepared onions and on medium heat fry for a few minutes, tossing to get an even colour.
5. Add the prepared ginger. Toss for a minute or two.
6. Increase the heat to medium-high and add the prepared peppers. Toss for a few minutes just until they start to soften.
7. Add the prepared courgettes. Toss to combine, then cover with a lid, reduce the heat to minimum and gently cook for a minute or two.
8. Serve the veg onto plates. Top with the citrus monkfish pieces, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with the finely chopped parsley. Enjoy!