Grilled fish

Ingredients

Fish

• 2whole fish of about 800 g each (red snapper, grouper, jack or a small barracuda), scaled, gutted and scored 3 times a side to the bone
• Juice of 3 limes
• 6garlic cloves, crushed to a paste
• 2 tspcoarse sea salt
• 1 tspblack pepper
• 3 tbspred palm oil, or 3 tbsp olive oil
• 1 tbspchopped parsley
• 2bay leaves, crumbled

Molho de pimenta

• 6malagueta or piri-piri chillies, chopped
• 3garlic cloves
• 1small onion, finely chopped
• Juice of 2 limes
• 3 tbsppalm or olive oil
• 1 tspsalt
• 1tomato, finely diced

To serve

• 600 gbreadfruit, peeled, cored and cut into wedges, or 300 g rice
• 2ripe plantains, sliced and fried
• 1lime, in wedges

Directions

1. Score the fish to the bone at three points on each side, cutting on a slight diagonal. The scores let the marinade and the heat reach the thick shoulder meat, which otherwise stays raw while the belly overcooks.
2. Rub the salt, garlic, pepper, lime juice, parsley and crumbled bay into the cuts and the belly cavity. Marinate 1 hour in the fridge, no longer, or the lime starts to cure the surface.
3. Build a charcoal fire and let it burn to grey-ashed embers, medium-hot: you should hold your hand 10 cm above the grate for about 4 seconds.
4. Boil the breadfruit wedges in salted water for 25 minutes until tender, or cook the rice, and fry the plantain slices in hot oil until dark gold. Keep both warm.
5. Make the molho by pounding the chillies, garlic and salt in a mortar, then stirring in the onion, tomato, lime juice and oil. Leave it to sit 20 minutes so the raw edge softens.
6. Pat the fish dry and brush it, and the grill bars, generously with palm oil. Wet fish welds itself to the grate.
7. Grill 10–12 minutes on the first side without touching it, then turn once with a fish slice and a spatula and give it 8–10 minutes on the second side, basting with the marinade.
8. It is done when the dorsal fin pulls out cleanly and the flesh at the backbone is opaque and just separating, around 60°C (140°F) at the thickest part. Rest 5 minutes on a warm plate.
9. Serve whole with the hot breadfruit and plantain, the molho de pimenta in a bowl to spoon over, and lime wedges.

Technique

• Sao Tome is an ocean island and grilled fish is everyday food, cooked over coconut husk and wood charcoal on the beach at Praia dos Tamarindos and in every roadside barraca. The seasoning is deliberately simple: lime, garlic, salt, chilli.
• Turn the fish once and once only. Every extra turn tears the skin, and the skin is what protects the flesh from the fire.
• Palm oil used as a basting oil burns at a lower temperature than neutral oil. Baste over the cooler part of the grate or use olive oil for basting and finish with palm oil off the heat.
• A whole fish keeps cooking off the fire. Pull it a minute early; carry-over will finish the job while it rests.

Substitutions

• No charcoal? Roast at 220°C (425°F) for 25–30 minutes on an oiled tray, then flash under a hot grill for 4 minutes to blister the skin.
• Any firm whole fish will do, and in Sao Tome the fish is simply whatever the pirogues landed that morning; avoid very delicate flatfish, which fall apart on a grate.
• Breadfruit out of season can be replaced by boiled cassava, matabala (taro) or plain rice.

Variations

• Peixe grelhado com molho de coco, finished with a spoonful of thick coconut milk stirred into the molho.
• A version rubbed with a paste of garlic, chilli and dried shrimp before grilling.
• Small fish such as voador (flying fish) grilled whole by the dozen and eaten with the fingers.

Frequently asked questions

What is Grilled fish?

Grilled fish is a main from Equatorial Guinea: fresh catch grilled over coals with chili and lime.

How long does Grilled fish take to make?

Grilled fish takes 25 min plus 1 hr marinating of preparation and 25 min of cooking. The recipe makes 4 servings. It is rated easy to make.

What can I substitute in Grilled fish?

Yes, within limits. No charcoal? Roast at 220°C (425°F) for 25–30 minutes on an oiled tray, then flash under a hot grill for 4 minutes to blister the skin. Any firm whole fish will do, and in Sao Tome the fish is simply whatever the pirogues landed that morning; avoid very delicate flatfish, which fall apart on a grate. Breadfruit out of season can be replaced by boiled cassava, matabala (taro) or plain rice.

What is the most important thing to get right in Grilled fish?

Score the fish to the bone at three points on each side, cutting on a slight diagonal. The scores let the marinade and the heat reach the thick shoulder meat, which otherwise stays raw while the belly overcooks.