Pass the Salt

There is nothing like a trip away to revitalise the culinary repertoire – except perhaps a new cookbook, which would have been a lot cheaper than a week in New Caledonia.

Usually I like to self-cater on holiday – it’s much more fun prowling the markets if you have a reason to buy the produce – but this time it was a hotel holiday and we ate out most of the time.  The restaurants in New Caledonia offer a range of French, Pacific and Asian cuisine – most of it, very good – but after a week of menus I was itching to get back into the kitchen.

Now that I’m home I’ve shaken the sand out of my suitcase and already I’ve been down to Moore Wilson stocking up on the sort of fresh produce that will help me recreate the tropical feel of Anse Vata and the Île des Pins.

I bought fish, prawns, salad greens, kumara and lemon grass; I even bought a coconut. One woman was so impressed with the contents of my trolley she stopped to congratulate me on how healthy it looked.

Tonight we’ve eaten snapper en papillote – in paper, because Moore Wilson doesn’t stock fresh banana leaves. In New Caledonia we ate the Kanak version: a ‘bougna’ of fish (or chicken) with taro and yams, wrapped up in a leafy parcel then cooked on hot stones under a mound of earth.

It was like a hangi but an inner layer of tin foil kept out the smoky flavours, which rather defeated the purpose. It looked fabulous (and I loved the ritual) but with no seasoning it tasted quite bland – more a cultural experience than a culinary success.

Here’s my oven-fired origami version – no fire, no stones, no leaves, no hassle.

Snapper en Papillote

Serve with a fresh green salad and kumara that’s been boiled then smashed (not mashed) and topped with butter.

400g snapper fillets (or any white fish), thickly sliced
12 prawns, shelled and de-veined
6 tbsp tinned coconut cream
1 small onion, finely chopped
2 handfuls spinach, chopped
vegetable oil
salt and pepper
1 lime, thinly sliced

baking paper, cut into 4 rectangles, 30 cm X 22 cm approx.

Heat oven to 190°C.
Place fish and prawns in a bowl, add coconut cream, mix together and set aside.
Heat oil in saute pan and gently cook onion until it softens. Add spinach and cook for a minute until it wilts.
Divide fish and prawns into four portions, discarding excess coconut cream.
Place each portion lengthwise on paper. Top with spinach and onions, salt and pepper and slices of lime. Bring long sides of paper together and make a neat double fold. Fold short edges over the top, flip parcel over and place on baking tray so folded edges are underneath.
Place in oven and bake for 15-20 mins.
Plate the cooked parcels and slash the top of each with a knife so guests can pull them apart.

Serves 4