Curried Monkfish with spinach risotto, squash purée and crispy Parma ham

Chef's Delight

Norbert Neylon

A WORD FROM THE CHEF:

This monkfish dish with risotto can be prepared in advance and cooked just before serving. The curry adds a great flavour to the dish. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celsius.

INGREDIENTS

Serves 4

Monkfish 1kg

Good quality curry powder 100g

Risotto rice 200g

Fish stock 500ml

One bay leaf

Butter 50g

Grated Parmesan 30g

Finely diced onion 30g

Finely chopped garlic 30g

Spinach 40g

Butternut Squash 150g

Parma ham, two thin slices

Chopped chives 15g

METHOD

To cook the risotto

1. Heat the fish stock.

2. In a separate saucepan sweat the onion and garlic until soft.

3. Add the risotto rice and enough hot stock to cover the rice.

4. Add the bay leaf and continue to stir until the stock has evaporated

5. Continue to add the stock slowly, and continue to stir the rice until the rice is cooked (approximately 10 to 12 minutes).

6. To finish the risotto add 30g of butter and 30g of Parmesan

7. Finally stir in the washed spinach and chopped chives.

To make the butternut squash puree

1. Place the chopped butternut squash in a saucepan and cover with water.

2. Boil until soft.

3. Strain the water from the squash and blend.

4. Add 20g of butter to the puree and a little of the water if necessary to get a smooth texture.

5. Season with salt and pepper

To cook the Monkfish

1. Portion the fish into 250g per serving.

2. Gently roll the fish in the curry powder.

3. Gently fry the fish rolled in the curry in a pan.

4. Place in a hot oven at 200 degrees Celsius for five to six minutes.

5. Remove the fish from the oven and allow to rest for about a minute before slicing.

The Parma Ham

To cook the ham place between two sheets of parchment paper and sandwich it between two trays. This will keep the ham flat. Bake until crispy, five minutes approximately.

Assembly

Place the spinach risotto in the centre of the plate add the squash puree. Place the sliced Monkfish on top and add the crisp Parma ham.

ABOUT THE CHEF

Norbert Neylon is the chef proprietor of The Oak Room Restaurant in Cavan since 2001. The Oak Room moved to a new purpose-built building in May of 2017 on Bridge Street in Cavan Town. Norbert is currently the chairman of Created in Cavan, a network of food producers, farmers, cafés, restaurants and hotels in the Cavan region.

He is passionate about promoting local food and cooking with local ingredients.