12-09-2006, 06:43 AM
Growing up in the small fishing village of Hout Bay it wasn't possible to escape the lure of the sea and it's wonderful produce.
From the evenings spent on the beach watching the trek fisherman haul in their nets to lazy days spent fishing off the harbour walls attempting to hook anything other than an eel, the sea offered up it's majestic catch via the shimmering looking glass on a peaceful day.
As kids we used to go to Cape Point with our dad and catch our crayfish, steam some mussels on the beach in camping pots and grill our freshly caught linefish. The joys of childhood eating al fresco.
Going fishing for snoek for the first time was adventurous - managing this on little sleep in 48 hours and still partying it up at the annual Snoek Festival and an almighty hangover to boot. Clearly unwise as all I managed to do was feed the fish from a very green face! Years later I was fortunate to hook one of these little fighters and take home my spoils.
Over the years I got to meet many varied fisherman – from the proverbial toothless wonders with vocabulary to make a sailor blush to the sophisticated 'Ra-Ra' set with their designer wives and fancy cars.
In between this bunch was a very special breed: Hard-drinking, partying, live-life-to-the-full. Somewhat mad and unashamedly brash in their take on life – they were the guys who really got me to love seafood and in particular that culinary minefield: raw fish.
One such guy, who at the time he was Cape Town's premier sports fishing captain, educated me on the joys of raw tuna.
From making a simple salad of tuna carpaccio to the more intricate ceviche or tartare of this wonderful species – I was sublimely hooked!
Uwe Schmidt taught me his personal recipe, which I have modified over the years and is without a doubt the easiest and tastiest version of tuna I have ever come across.
At a braai a few years back with a bunch of Saffer expats, it attracted the attentions of a very attractive young lady who took it upon herself to get closer to me for some more tasty morsels. A few months later she moved in with me as my girlfriend.
IÂ’d like to think it was my ability to dance after several glasses of wine that caught her attention, my aftershave or even possibly my wayward sense of humour and outlook on life that clinched it for me. However if I really have to be honest it was the simple flavour combinations of this recipe that somehow created alchemy and allowed the chemistry to flourish. The Japanese have a term for this: Umame
If you can get hold of it from your local fishmonger, the Australian Rudderfish (they refer to it as white tuna, not the albacore as we know it) is the absolute finest you will eat.
Alternatively any sashimi grade tuna will do.
Cook it on a braai next time to give it that typical South African touch but be wary of the strange women lurking nearby!
:edit:
Please follow the link to see the recipe:
http://www.globalbuzz-sa.com/forums/show...hp?t=12534
Author: Grant Hawthorne. Copyright. All rights reserved.
From the evenings spent on the beach watching the trek fisherman haul in their nets to lazy days spent fishing off the harbour walls attempting to hook anything other than an eel, the sea offered up it's majestic catch via the shimmering looking glass on a peaceful day.
As kids we used to go to Cape Point with our dad and catch our crayfish, steam some mussels on the beach in camping pots and grill our freshly caught linefish. The joys of childhood eating al fresco.
Going fishing for snoek for the first time was adventurous - managing this on little sleep in 48 hours and still partying it up at the annual Snoek Festival and an almighty hangover to boot. Clearly unwise as all I managed to do was feed the fish from a very green face! Years later I was fortunate to hook one of these little fighters and take home my spoils.
Over the years I got to meet many varied fisherman – from the proverbial toothless wonders with vocabulary to make a sailor blush to the sophisticated 'Ra-Ra' set with their designer wives and fancy cars.
In between this bunch was a very special breed: Hard-drinking, partying, live-life-to-the-full. Somewhat mad and unashamedly brash in their take on life – they were the guys who really got me to love seafood and in particular that culinary minefield: raw fish.
One such guy, who at the time he was Cape Town's premier sports fishing captain, educated me on the joys of raw tuna.
From making a simple salad of tuna carpaccio to the more intricate ceviche or tartare of this wonderful species – I was sublimely hooked!
Uwe Schmidt taught me his personal recipe, which I have modified over the years and is without a doubt the easiest and tastiest version of tuna I have ever come across.
At a braai a few years back with a bunch of Saffer expats, it attracted the attentions of a very attractive young lady who took it upon herself to get closer to me for some more tasty morsels. A few months later she moved in with me as my girlfriend.
IÂ’d like to think it was my ability to dance after several glasses of wine that caught her attention, my aftershave or even possibly my wayward sense of humour and outlook on life that clinched it for me. However if I really have to be honest it was the simple flavour combinations of this recipe that somehow created alchemy and allowed the chemistry to flourish. The Japanese have a term for this: Umame
If you can get hold of it from your local fishmonger, the Australian Rudderfish (they refer to it as white tuna, not the albacore as we know it) is the absolute finest you will eat.
Alternatively any sashimi grade tuna will do.
Cook it on a braai next time to give it that typical South African touch but be wary of the strange women lurking nearby!
:edit:
Please follow the link to see the recipe:
http://www.globalbuzz-sa.com/forums/show...hp?t=12534
Author: Grant Hawthorne. Copyright. All rights reserved.