Name: Barramundi en croûte
Prep time: 40 min
Cook time: 180 min
Total time: 220 min
Yield: 6 - 8
Ingredients: 10 vine-ripened tomatoes, bases scored; 200 ml olive oil; 1½ small fennel bulbs, thinly sliced on a mandolin; 150 gm (1 cup) Kalamata olives, pitted and coarsely chopped; 2 Cone Bay barramundi fillets (about 550gm each) from 1 barramundi, pin-boned; For brushing: eggwash; 10 large kipfler potatoes (about 1.2kg), scrubbed; 200 ml extra-virgin olive oil; 1½ cups (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped; To serve: radicchio, fennel and pear salad; Salt crust; 1.4 kg plain flour; 1 kg rock salt; 2 cups thyme (about 8 bunches), coarsely chopped; 2 cups rosemary (about 5 bunches), coarsely chopped; 7 eggwhites, lightly beaten; Crêpes; 125 gm plain flour, sieved; 2 eggs, lightly beaten; 400 ml milk; 1 tbsp finely chopped chives; For brushing: melted butter; Sauce vierge; 250 ml (1 cup) extra-virgin olive oil; 80 ml (1/3 cup) lemon juice; 2 tsp coriander seeds, finely crushed with a mortar and pestle; 1 cup (firmly packed) basil, cut into julienne

“This is a dish for a special occasion – it has quite a few elements and will take some planning,” says Cooke. “To cook a whole fish in a salt crust seals in the flavour of the flesh and maintains the moisture. Have your fishmonger scale the fish and remove the fins.”

Ingredients

10 vine-ripened tomatoes, bases scored

200 ml olive oil

1½ small fennel bulbs, thinly sliced on a mandolin

150 gm (1 cup) Kalamata olives, pitted and coarsely chopped

2 Cone Bay barramundi fillets (about 550gm each) from 1 barramundi, pin-boned

For brushing: eggwash

10 large kipfler potatoes (about 1.2kg), scrubbed

200 ml extra-virgin olive oil

1½ cups (loosely packed) flat-leaf parsley, coarsely chopped

To serve: radicchio, fennel and pear salad

Salt crust

1.4 kg plain flour

1 kg rock salt

2 cups thyme (about 8 bunches), coarsely chopped

2 cups rosemary (about 5 bunches), coarsely chopped

7 eggwhites, lightly beaten

Crêpes

125 gm plain flour, sieved

2 eggs, lightly beaten

400 ml milk

1 tbsp finely chopped chives

For brushing: melted butter

Sauce vierge

250 ml (1 cup) extra-virgin olive oil

80 ml (1/3 cup) lemon juice

2 tsp coriander seeds, finely crushed with a mortar and pestle

1 cup (firmly packed) basil, cut into julienne

Method

Main

1.Preheat oven to 80C. Blanch tomatoes until skins split (20-30 seconds), refresh in iced water. Drain, peel, halve and remove seeds (discard skin and seeds). Place 8 tomato halves cut-side down in a baking dish to fit snugly, drizzle with 100ml olive oil, season to taste and roast until tender (1-1½ hours). Coarsely chop and set aside. Reserve remaining tomatoes for sauce vierge.

2.Meanwhile, for salt crust, combine dry ingredients and herbs in a large bowl, then turn out onto a work surface and make a well in the centre, add eggwhite and 600ml water then, gradually working the wet ingredients into the dry without breaking the well, knead to form a dough. Cover with plastic wrap and refrigerate to rest (1 hour).

3.For crêpes, sieve flour into a bowl and make a well in the centre, gradually add eggs and milk to well, and whisk until a smooth batter forms. Add chives, season to taste and refrigerate to rest (1 hour). Heat a 24cm non-stick frying pan or crêpe pan over medium-high heat, brush pan with a little butter, pour in a ¼ cup of batter and cook, turning once, until golden (30 seconds to 1 minute). Place on a plate and repeat with remaining batter.

4.Heat remaining olive oil in a large frying pan over high heat, add fennel and stir occasionally to sear and crisp (30 seconds-1 minute). Remove from heat, then add olives and confit tomatoes to fennel, toss to combine, season to taste, set aside.

5.Increase oven heat to 200C. Cut salt crust dough in half and roll a half between 2 sheets of baking paper to a 28cm x 46cm rectangle. Remove top sheet of baking paper and place dough on a large tray. Repeat with remaining dough and set aside.

6.Place 3-4 crêpes overlapping along one dough sheet and place one barramundi fillet skin-side down on top. Drain excess liquid from fennel mixture, spoon over barramundi, then top with remaining fillet skin-side up and head to tail with base fillet. Top with another 3-4 crêpes (you may have crêpes left over), then place remaining salt-crust dough over, seal and trim edges, brush all over with eggwash and roast until crust is golden and fish is cooked (1 hour).

7.Cook potatoes in a large saucepan of boiling salted water until tender (15-25 minutes), drain, peel and set aside. Heat extra-virgin olive oil and parsley in a frying pan over medium-high heat, add potatoes and crush with a fork until combined, season to taste and keep warm.

8.For sauce vierge, combine extra-virgin olive oil, lemon juice, coriander seeds and basil in a small saucepan, season to taste and stir gently over low heat to warm through (1-2 minutes). Dice remaining tomatoes, add to oil mixture and set aside.

9.To serve, remove crust from fish (discard) then divide fish among plates, drizzle with sauce vierge and serve with crushed potatoes and a radicchio, fennel and pear salad to the side.