Fish Wrapped in Vine Leaves

INGREDIENTS

  • 2 Leek
  • 1 Lemon
  • 4 handfuls Wild fennel
  • To taste Salt flakes
  • 4 Tommy Ruff
  • 8-12 Grape Vine Leaf

paste

  • 2 tbspn Caper
  • 1/2 cup Flat leaf parsley
  • 1/2 cup Marjoram
Print Recipe

Blanch leeks for 2 minutes and allow them to cool. Take off the outside leaves and cut the leeks in half lengthways. Remove pulp from Preserved Lemon, rinse and chop.

Put all ingredients into the mortar, add a small amount of Extra Virgin Olive Oil and grind to a paste, adding more oil to paste if necessary.

Line up four pairs of large fresh vine leaves that were blanched in boiling water for a minute (you can use preserved vine leaves if really well rinsed) and spread with even amounts of paste.

Wrap fish in vine leaves, tie across the middle with the leeks, drizzle with Extra Virgin Olive Oil and sprinkle with sea salt.

On a barbecue or a grill plate, seal both sides and cook, turning each side again for around 15 minutes in total until the fish is cooked at its thickest part. Allow to rest for 5 minutes and serve on a bed of wild dill with lemon wedges.

An alternative is to preheat the oven to 230C. Brush a large baking dish with Extra Virgin Olive Oil. Bake the fish on a bed of the wild fennel.

Bake for 10 minutes on one side, turn over for another 5 minutes, allow to rest, and sprinkle with some sea salt and a squeeze of lemon.

Maggie”s Tip: I found with the kettle BBQ slow cooking was a much more gentle way of cooking this recipe. Cooking time will vary enormously between a gas BBQ and a kettle BBQ.