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Poached trout with pickled cucumbers

Frank Camorra
Frank Camorra

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Zesty fish: Poached ocean trout with pickled cucumbers.
Zesty fish: Poached ocean trout with pickled cucumbers.Marcel Aucar

Tasmanian ocean trout has a distinctive rosy pink-orange flesh which makes it an ideal poaching fish. The cucumber pickle is one I used to make when we had MoVida bakery. It was very popular and went with almost everything, from aged cheddar cheese to poached salmon.

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Ingredients

  • 600ml water

  • 1 brown onion, peeled and roughly chopped

  • 1 carrot, peeled and chopped thinly

  • 1 garlic clove, crushed

  • 1 lemon, sliced

  • 60ml white vinegar

  • 60ml white wine

  • 2 sprigs tarragon

  • 6 black peppercorns

  • 1 star anise

  • 2 bay leaves

  • 1 tbsp salt

  • 4 x 150g ocean trout fillets, pin boned with skin on 

Pickled cucumbers

  • 600g young Lebanese cucumbers, unpeeled

  • 1 brown onion, thinly sliced

  • 1½  tbsp salt

  • ¼ cup hot water

  • 1 cup white wine vinegar

  • 1 cup sugar

  • 2 tsp brown mustard seeds

  • 1 tsp dill, chopped

  • ¼ tsp ground turmeric

  • ½ tsp chilli flakes

Method

  1. For the poached fish, place all the ingredients except the fish in a medium-sized saucepan, bring to a simmer and cook for 5 minutes. Add the fish and simmer for about 10 minutes. Lift the fish out gently and squeeze it to see if it is still soft in the middle - it should feel firm when it is done.

    When ready, lift fish out, place on a plate and remove the skin. Spoon some pickled cucumbers (see recipe below) onto a serving plate, then break the fillet into a few pieces and place on top of the pickle. Serve with a wedge of lemon.

    Pickled cucumbers
    Slice cucumbers thinly then mix with sliced onion in a large stainless bowl. Dissolve salt in hot water, then pour over cucumber mixture. Mix through and leave for 3 hours. To make pickling liquid, mix remaining ingredients in a saucepan big enough to hold all the mixture including the cucumber. Bring to the simmer over medium heat, stirring until sugar has dissolved. Pour the cucumber mix into a colander and press out any liquid gently.

    Tip the cucumber into the pickling liquid and simmer for 2-4 minutes, stirring once or twice. Remove from heat and put 3 cups aside for this recipe, then spoon the rest into sterilised jars for future use, ensuring the cucumber is covered by liquid. Makes 5 x 300g jars.

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Frank CamorraFrank Camorra is chef and co-owner of MoVida Sydney and Melbourne's MoVida Bar De Tapas.

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