I have to confess, I’m not a fan of cooking different meals to accommodate different tastes. Maybe I’d have been a horrible mum if I’d had children. I can imagine them all demanding their favourite meals and me refusing point blank and screaming something along the lines of “this is not an a la carte restaurant you know”. But sometimes, just sometimes, I go all contrary and make something different for me and Big Man. As long as it doesn’t involve anything too stressful in terms of extra work.
We were in the mood for fish and I had bought some gorgeous trout steaks and langoustines from the fishmonger. Having made a recent trip to a wonderful Chinese Supermarket I had been dreaming all day of oriental flavours. Big Man was coming down with a cold and feeling in need of a taste of home. No problem – this was an easy fix and we would both be happy.
Asian Style Dish
- 1 trout steak and 2 large langoustines marinated for 30 minutes in a little freshly grated ginger, a large clove of crushed garlic, a tablespoon of soy sauce, a teaspoon of sesame oil and a splash of fish sauce
Mediterranean Style Dish
- 1 trout steak and 2 large tiger prawns/langoustines marinated for 30 minutes in the grated zest of half a lemon, the juice of half a lemon and a tablespoon of olive oil
Both dishes
- Steamed pak choi and sautéed sliced mushrooms
Griddle or grill the trout and langoustines on a high heat until the trout is almost cooked through (I like it a little pink in the middle but cook for longer if you like) and the langoustines turn from black to pink.
To serve the Asian Style Dish
Drizzle a little chili oil over the fish and prawns and some oyster sauce over the vegetables and top with finely shredded spring onion.
To serve the Mediterranean Style Dish
Drizzle a little olive oil and lemon juice over the fish, prawns and vegetables.
Easy, healthy, fairly quick to prepare and cook, and everyone is happy!
Chica Andaluza 
That looks delicious. In general, children should eat as they’re told. Then you can make special treats for them occasionally 🙂
Oh I do agree Rosemary! Well, that’s how I was bought up at least 🙂
I’m not sure which one I’d ask for at the Chica A la carte restaurant! Eithe rone is simple and delicious and shows how flexible great ingredients are. Cx
Maybe a little half portion of each… 😉
They both look delicious – and just the sort of dish to make the ‘big Man’ feel better. Hope he doesn’t pass it on to you.
With regard to bad mothers – I always gave my daughter a choice for meals. But it was ‘take it or leave it – I’m not cooking more’. Bad mother confession. I think she still likes me…..
I like your approach…that works for me!
Oh lordy….prawns would be part of my death row dinner. I’m more than a little envious that you have a local fishmonger…a rare breed indeed!
I do hope you get to enjoy some before you get condemned to death row! (I’d have one of those huge shellfish platters!).
I feel the same – I like the idea of having a restaurant and serving one dish per day. That way it would always be excellent and economical. However, you seem to have made two delicious dishes effortlessly 😉
Well, it was only a few simple tweaks! But I’m with you on the restaurant…and I’m always very suspicious of restaurants that have menus with far too many dishes…how the heck can they possibly all be freshly cooked?
They can’t – I worked in one once and we often had to defrost fish and meat in a sink full of hot water before cooking. Less is more 😉
Eek!
Wow,
I tuoi piatti sono sempre più buoni!
Ciao, Chica ,sei bravissima e anche con i bambini faresti bene a non viziarli !
Grazie mille – mi piace molto cocinare e mangiare sabori di tutto il mondo!
Vedo! Ciao , Chica Andaluza!
Both recipes are fantastic, both are easily ‘doable’ and both taste great!! Actually, both for taste and health, these are the two basic methods I use in my own everyday home cooking! Well, I DO prefer the Asian side with its infinite number of variations on the theme and stronger flavours 🙂 ! 🙂 ! Have just finished grilled fish fillets your Asian style with brown rice and pak choi: am content!!!! But the geography comes to influence too!
When I was “down under” and world travelling I was in Asian food heaven. Really love the flavours. Big Man has spent a lifetime eating good but fairly simple Spanish food to I have to say hats off to him for being prepared to try new things, but I do understand that he doesn’t crave the strong flavours that I adore…this was a “compromise”, but I’m with you…give me Asian flavours any time!
Both dishes are outstanding, Tanya, and I would have begged you to split the dishes between us. I have a hard enough time making decisions. Having to choose between these 2 preparations would stress me out! And those prawns/langoustines look fantastic, by the way.
I hope Big Man is feeling better soon.
I think Big Man had a touch of Man Flu! He is also trying to give up smoking after a lifetime of the horrible habit, so I’m happy to be as supportive as I can right now…it must be so tough. In Spain, many restaurants offer 3 options on a dish – a tapas sized portion, a half portion and a full portion. It’s quite typical to order lots of half portions of things (they’re not just for children!) so that you get a little bit of everything. Which suits me perfectly 😉
I love them both.
We were lucky to have such gorgeous ingredients, so it all tasted good!
Oh, Tanya.. I’d want a little of both, please:D I’m lucky now, tonight we were having left-overs and my 21 year old decided otherwise.. so she made her own stir-fry.. now things are getting a little easier around here all the time! xx
Yes, once they start cooking for themselves I expect that helps. Or do you look over her shoulder and think “ooh, I fancy that now instead of what I had planned!”? Leftovers are the best 🙂
Both dishes do it for me. I’m becoming a lot less tolerant of cooking things to suit faddy tastes – but then again, I’m not known for my tolerance:)
I rather enjoy being a grumpy old (ish) woman… you can get away with so much as the years pass!
Oh dear, the piggy I am, I would want BOTH!
🙂 Mandy xo
Nothing wrong with that!
Asia meets the Med…sounds like true fusion cooking to me! ;). Sorry to hear that The Big Man is coming down with something…hope he is feeling better now. That delicious meal you cooked him should have done something to salve the problem :).
Ah, he’ll live but thanks for the good wishes! I think I have seen Asian Med fusion restaurants in Spain..will have to check one out!
So long as you steer clear of the more extreme elements of Asian cooking you have a cuisine that will meld amazingly well with just about any other cuisine. I know, here in Australia we specialise in cuisine mingling and Asia, being our nearest and dearest was numero uno (after Italian of course 😉 ) Hugs to the still living Big Man 😉
I loved the variety (and quality) of Asian food in Oz…breakfast, lunch and dinner!
You came here and we never met? Surely it would have been like crossing the streams in Ghostbusters! 😉
I did (twice) but the last visit was 8 years ago 😦 Never made it to Tasmania…will have to put that right next time!
8 years ago I wasn’t living in Tassie, I lived in Western Australia, Albany Western Australia to be precise. Dad changed all of that when he offered to pay for us to move over here and live in one of his untennented houses in Launceston city. We lived there for 4 years till dad died and left us the city house and Serendipity Farm :). Did you make it to W.A. in your travels? Perth is lovely 🙂
Never made it over that way – Melbourne, Sydney, Brisbane….how funny about the name of your old town. It has become very special to us as it’s the name of our road! I hear Perth is beautiful. It’s on the wish list.
I’m with you on not cooking more than one meal – as any of my three kids could tell you – but that was easy enough to not be a pain. These days, my mother is worse than any child ever was…good thing I don’t cook for her too often!
Oh yes, our older family members to start to get a bit demanding in their dotage!
Both dishes sound (and look) incredible. Hope Big Man’s feeling better.
Thank you – Big Man just has a slight case of the sniffles now!
I had to laugh at how you would handle picky children eaters!! I made dinner and that was that, I told them it was the Chef Special and no substitutions! I’m definitely jealous over your availability of seafood, you first have to start with quality products and these look amazing! I’d try both recipes!!
Yes, we were never given choices as children and if we were being particularly bratty and refusing to eat, the meal sometimes made a reappearance…just to make sure we understood that food was not to be thrown away!
Both ways seem delicious. Wouldn’t do one without doing the other to be honest.. 🙂
I did get to taste both…which was fun!
I was not a good eater when I was little and my mom had to make separate meals for me. Apparently hot dogs are quick and easy. I’m surprised I survived but I loved them then. I don’t eat many hot dogs now.
And I love trout. Fresh Rainbow Trout from the Snake River in Wyoming–that sounds nice.
Oh yes, fresh rainbow trout…that’s quite a journey from hot dogs to trout!
Sometimes I miss being a kid–no bills, but dude, I can’t go back to hot dogs. At least not everyday.
😉
poor dear Big Man…watch for him to catch the flu at least several times a year now…he might have just discovered your weak-in-the-knees-mama-spot. (you don’t need to be a mom for that!) Tanya these two ways of preparing the same food sound equally good! Did you try them both? Did you serve up half and half…it’d have been so tempting! So Good!!
Yes, I can be a mothering type sometimes…well, we have to look after our loved ones! And yes, of course I tried both…chef’s privilege 😉
This looks fantastic, and I have a cold right now so can you fix me some??? Beautiful colors. The looks of this pretty dish alone makes me feel better and I’m sure it tasted great and was full of clean, healthy flavor.
When I have a cold I too crave vitamin packed foods and those colours certainly do pep things up!
Beeeee-you-ti-ful fish!!
Thank you!
i like prawn,….