Ingredients
- 150g/5½oz cherry tomatoes, halved
For the Thai green emulsion
- 3 tbsp fresh coriander
- 3 tbsp fresh mint leaves
- 4 kaffir lime leaves
- 1 lemon, zest and 1 tbsp juice
- 4 lemongrass sticks, crushed and chopped
- 1 tbsp grated fresh ginger
- 1 green chilli, finely sliced
- 15g/½oz galangal (available from Asian supermarkets)
- 400ml/14oz sunflower oil
- 1 free-range egg
- 1 tbsp white wine vinegar
- 2 tsp Dijon mustard
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the squid-ink-battered halibut
- sunflower oil, for deep-frying
- 4 halibut fillets, skin removed and pin-boned, each cut into 4 pieces
- 175g/6oz self-raising flour
- 25g/1oz squid ink (available from some supermarkets, specialist stores and online)
- 150ml/5fl oz–200ml/7fl oz cold sparkling water
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
Method
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Preheat the oven to 110C/90C Fan/Gas ¼ and line a baking tray with baking paper. Place the cherry tomatoes on the baking tray and roast for 1 hour or until dried out.
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For the Thai green emulsion, bring a small saucepan of water to the boil and blanch to coriander and the mint leaves for 2 minutes. Immediately refresh under cold, running water. Drain the leaves and pat dry with kitchen paper.
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Place lime leaves, lemon zest, lemongrass, grated ginger, chilli, galangal and 100ml/3½fl oz sunflower oil into a saucepan and gently heat through.
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Transfer this mixture into a liquidiser and add the coriander and mint. Blend thoroughly until smooth. Sieve the mixture into a bowl, set aside and leave to cool.
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In a food processor, blend the egg, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard and seasoning on a high speed, slowly adding the remaining 300ml/10fl oz sunflower oil until the mixture has thickened. Fold in the cooled, spicy green liquid and set aside.
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For the halibut, fill a deep-fat fryer or a large, deep, heavy-bottomed pan two-thirds full with the oil. Heat to 180C (a cube of bread should turn brown in one minute when dropped in.) CAUTION: Hot oil can be dangerous. Do not leave unattended.
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In a large bowl, mix the flour and squid ink together, season generously with salt and pepper, then with an electric whisk, incorporate the cold, sparkling water to form a runny batter.
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Dip each halibut piece into the batter and shake off the excess. Repeat this process twice for each piece.
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Carefully, lower the coated haddock pieces into the deep-fat fryer and cook for 4 minutes or until the batter is crispy and the fish is cooked through. Remove from fryer and drain on kitchen paper.
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Dot the emulsion onto the plate and place the fish on top, scatter the cherry tomatoes around the plate.