Happy new year!
This is the perfect dish for January. White fish baked in a creamy garlic sauce with fresh parsley and a cheesy breadcrumb crust.
If you’re anything like me, you’ve been surviving off cheese and wine for a week, and ready to introduce some decent food back into your diet. But going cold turkey on my cheese addiction feels far too difficult when the rain is pouring down outside and there’s still a bottle of wine open in the fridge calling my name. Well, this recipe is the perfect gateway drug. It’s creamy, comforting, contains cheese and breadcrumbs, it’s filling and delicious, and you can serve it with a generous helping of veg.
Basa is a really meaty, tasty white fish that’s so much cheaper to buy than cod or haddock, which is why I’ve used it in this recipe. But feel free to use whatever white fish you have available to you.
Ready in 1hr 10mins (10mins prep, 10mins to make the roux, 50mins bake) – Serves 2.
Ingredients:
- 25g of salted butter
- 25g of corn flour
- 300mls of double cream
- 50mls of white wine
- 1 large garlic clove, crushed and finely chopped
- 1 packet of fresh parsley, chopped
- 1 pinch of tarragon (fresh or dried)
- 2 Basa fillets, skinless and boneless
- 1 frozen crust of bread
- 50g of strong cheddar cheese, grated
- A good pinch of salt
- A good pinch of black pepper
Method:
- Preheat oven to 200c / 180c fan / gas mark 6.
- Put a pan on the hob over a medium heat and add the butter and corn flour and whisk until the butter melted and the flour is completely mixed in. This is a Roux.
- Keep whisking for a minute to cook out the flour, then start adding the cream a couple of tablespoons at a time.
- Whisk it make sure you don’t have lumps of flour and make sure the cream is well combined before adding the next drop
- Once all the cream is mixed in, add the wine and garlic and continue to whisk over heat until the sauce thickens.
- Make sure it doesn’t boil though, you don’t want to burn it.
- Once thickened, take the pan off the heat and add the fresh parsley and tarragon.
- Put the fish in a large oven proof dish and spread the sauce over the top.
- Grate the frozen crust of bread and mix with the grated cheese, salt and pepper.
- Sprinkle the breadcrumb mix evenly over the top of the sauce.
- Bake for 50-60mins, or until piping hot throughout, the breadcrumbs and cheese are golden brown and crispy on top and the sauce is bubbling.
- Serve hot.
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