Copper Pot's Savoury Prawn Rice

100 g butter

5 cm piece English cucumber, cut into small cubes

1 rib celery, finely chopped

i/2 red pepper, finely chopped

100 ml sliced button mushrooms 100 ml cooked corn kernels

1 tomato, blanched, peeled, seeded and finely cubed

100 g peeled prawns, well drained

on kitchen paper (weigh after shelling) 500 ml cooked rice

30 ml chopped fresh parsley

salt and milled black pepper

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan, add the cucumber, celery, red pepper, mushrooms, corn and tomato and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes (the vegetables should still be crisp).

Add the prawns, cover and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in the rice and parsley, season with salt and pepper and heat through.

Serves 4

Jake's Portuguese Rice

olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

30 ml chopped fresh parsley 1 clove garlic, crushed

250 ml rice

15 ml tomato paste

salt and milled black pepper 375 ml water

Heat olive oil in a heavy saucepan and fry the onion until translucent.

Stir in the parsley, garlic, rice and tomato paste, season with salt and pepper, then add the water.

Cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes until the rice is cooked and all the liquid has been absorbed.

Serves 6

Bayfront Blu's Kitali Rice

butter

1 onion, diced

1 red pepper, seeded and diced

1 green pepper, seeded and diced 100 g button mushrooms, sliced salt and milled black pepper

750 ml cooked basmati or white rice

Heat butter in a medium saucepan and fry the onion until translucent. Add the red and green pepper and the mushrooms, and season with salt and pepper.

Cover and simmer for 2-3 minutes until the mushrooms are tender. Mix in the rice and heat through.

Serves 4

Mussels a la Provençal

2 kg (about 48) black mussels, scrubbed and debearded

200 g butter

1 onion, finely chopped

250 ml white wine

1 sprig fresh thyme

2 bay leaves

15 ml crushed garlic

2 ripe tomatoes, blanched, skinned and chopped

60 ml chopped fresh parsley

Heat 60 g of the butter in a large pot and fry the onion for about 2 minutes until golden.

Add the wine, thyme and bay leaves and bring to the boil. Add mussels, cover and boil until they open wide. Discard any which remain shut. Strain the sauce into a clean pot. Deshell the mussels and gently pull out any beards that remain.

Heat the remaining butter in a clean frying pan and gently fry the mussels. Add the garlic, tomato and parsley, and heat through. Serve hot with new potatoes. Serves 4

Stuffed Calamari a la Marseillaise

1 kg whole calamari (with tentacles),

well cleaned

olive oil, salt, milled black pepper

2 onions, finely chopped

100 g white bread

1 litre milk

2 ripe tomatoes, blanched, skinned

and diced 3 egg yolks 15 ml crushed garlic

60 ml chopped fresh parsley

250 ml white wine

125 ml water

100 g fresh white breadcrumbs

Set the oven at 180° C. Grease a baking dish. Cut off the calamari tentacles and chop finely. Clean the calamari tubes ready for stuffing.

Heat a little olive oil in a medium saucepan and fry the onion and calamari tentacles until golden.

Place the bread in a bowl, pour over the milk and soak.

Squeeze out the excess milk, and add the bread to the pan with the tomato, egg yolks and half the garlic and parsley. Mix well. Season with salt and pepper.

Fill the calamari tubes with the stuffing and sew closed with string, or fasten with skewers.

Place in the baking dish, pour in the white wine and water and season with salt and pepper. Cover with foil and bake for 30 minutes.

Remove the foil and heat the oven grill. Mix together the breadcrumbs, remaining garlic and parsley, sprinkle on top of the calamari and grill until golden brown. Serves 6

Risotto di Scampi

400 g prawns, shelled and deveined;cut in half if large

45 ml olive oil

70 g unsalted butter

1 onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

2 ribs celery, finely chopped

1 large carrot, finely chopped 350 g arborio rice

15 ml chopped fresh parsley

2 litres hot Fish Stock

(approximate amount; page 209) salt and milled black pepper

50 ml dry white wine

Heat the oil and half the butter in a large heavy saucepan over medium heat and fry the onion and garlic until translucent. Add the celery and carrot and cook until softened. Mix in the rice and parsley.

Add 250 ml hot fish stock and cook, stirring constantly, until absorbed. Continue in this way until most of the stock has been used up.

Watchpoint: Never drown risotto by adding too much liquid at a time!

Season with salt and pepper, mix in the prawns and cook for 5 minutes more, stirring and adding a little more stock of necessary. Check if the risotto is tender but still firm to the bite.

Remove the pot from the heat, add the wine and remaining butter. Cover and set aside for 2-5 minutes before serving. Serves 4

Prawn Bruschetta

250 g medium prawns, shelled and deveined 30 ml extra virgin olive oil

2 cloves garlic, crushed

2 ml chopped fresh red or green chilli

15 ml chopped fresh parsley salt and milled black pepper 4 slices country bread, about 2 cm thick

2 cloves garlic, peeled and cut in half lemon wedges for garnish

Neatly cut each prawn into 3 pieces. Heat the olive oil in a small saucepan and fry the garlic and chilli over medium low heat for 1-2 minutes. Add the prawns and parsley, increase the heat and fry for 1-2 minutes until the prawns are cooked. Season with salt and pepper.

Toast the bread on both sides and rub with cut garlic. Arrange on warm plat and spoon prawns and pan juices on top. Serve immediately, with lemon wedges for squeezing.

Serves 4

Mushrooms with Smoked Salmon and Wine Butter

4 large brown mushrooms, wiped clean 125 g butter

60 ml dry white wine

salt and milled black pepper

4 slices smoked salmon

125 g grated mozzarella cheese

chopped fresh parsley

Melt half the butter in a small frying pan and fry the mushrooms, upper side down, until golden. Turn them, add half the wine, season with salt and pepper, cover with a lid, and simmer gently for

3-4 minutes until tender. Slice and arrange on warm plates.

Add the butter remaining to the pan, pour in the remaining wine and season with salt and pepper.

Set the oven at 200°C. Pour a little sauce over the mushrooms. Place a slice of smoked salmon on top, scatter with grated mozzarella cheese and bake for 5-6 minutes until the cheese melts. Garnish with chopped parsley and serve immediately. Serves 4

Mussels Poached in Wine and Cream

36 black mussels, scrubbed and debearded

500 ml off-dry white wine

75 g butter

2 spring onions, sliced (green parts too)

100 ml cake flour

250 ml mussel liquor (from steaming mussels open)

15 ml crushed garlic

'12 carrot, finely chopped

1 ml dried thyme

750 ml milk

250 ml cream

salt and milled black pepper

chopped fresh parsley

Place the mussels into a large saucepan with 60 ml of the wine. Cover, bring to the boil and cook until mussels open wide. Discard any which remain shut. Drain (retain the liquor) and remove a half-shell from each. Gently pull out any beards which remain.

Melt the butter in a large saucepan and fry the spring onion until soft. Remove from the heat and blend in the flour, mussel liquor and remaining wine.

Add the garlic, carrot and thyme and bring to the boil. Add the milk and cream, season with salt and pepper, cover and simmer for about 20 minutes.

To Serve: Bring the sauce to the boil, add the mussels and keg through. Ladle into warm bowls and garnish with chopped parsley. Offer with brown bread.

Serves 6

Calamari Salad

350 g small calamari tubes, well cleaned mixed lettuce leaves

'/3 English cucumber, sliced

1-2 firm tomatoes, cut into wedges 1 onion, finely sliced

small bunch spring onions, finely sliced

Mustard Herb Dressing

125 ml vegetable oil 30 ml olive oil

200 ml red wine vinegar 20 ml crushed garlic

10 ml mild mustard

60 ml chopped fresh herbs (parsley, oregano, fennel)

salt, freshly squeezed lemon juice

Slice the calamari into rings, pile in a bowl and pour over plenty of briskly boiling water. After 1 minute, when edges of the calamari start curling, drain in a colander. Tip into a bowl.

Mustard Herb Dressing: Whisk together the ingredients, pour a little over the calamari, cover and chill.

Arrange lettuce leaves in a large salad bowl. Add the cucumber, tomatoes and sliced onion. Top with calamari and garnish with chopped spring onion. Sprinkle over a little of the mustard herb dressing and serve the rest separately. Serves 4

Sesame Prawns with Cocktail Sauce

28 medium prawns, shelled and deveined; tail shells on

cake flour

2 eggs, lightly beaten

500 g sesame seeds

vegetable oil for deep frying

Cocktail Sauce

10 ml finely chopped onion

2 ml finely chopped horseradish

1 clove garlic, finely chopped

5 ml finely chopped capers

15 ml finely chopped fresh parsley

200 ml Mayonnaise

Cocktail Sauce: MN together the ingredients. Cover and chill.

Hold prawns by the tail, roll in flour, dip in egg and press into sesame seeds to coat evenly.

Deep fry in hot oil until golden. Pile onto a plate, garnish with lemon wedges and offer as snacks with cocktail sauce. Serves 4

Rock Cod and Prawn Cakes with Garlic Mayonnaise

If rock cod isn't available, use any fresh linefish.

500 g rock cod, skinned, filleted and cubed

250 g whole peeled shrimps, well drained on kitchen paper (weigh after shelling)

150 g potato, peeled and cubed

butter, salt, milled black pepper

1 onion, finely chopped

1 clove garlic, crushed

15 ml wholegrain mustard

30 ml chopped fresh herbs (parsley and basil)

4 eggs, lightly beaten

vegetable oil for deep frying

Coating

cake flour

2 eggs, lightly beaten

seasoned toasted breadcrumbs

Garlic Mayonnaise

250 ml Mayonnaise

4 cloves garlic, crushed

15 ml finely chopped fresh parsley

Garlic Mayonnaise: Mix together the ingredients in a bowl. Cover and chill.

Cook the potato in salted boiling water until soft. Drain and mash with a little butter, and season with salt and pepper.

Heat butter in a clean saucepan and fry the onion and garlic until translucent. Add the fish and cook until about three quarters done. Flake into the onion and garlic, and mix in the mashed potato.

Fry the shrimps in butter until opaque. Set six aside; chop the rest, add to the fish mixture with the mustard and herbs, mix in the eggs, and season well with salt and pepper.

Shape into six cakes, enclosing a reserved prawn in each. Roll in flour, dip in egg, and coat with breadcrumbs. Chill for at least an hour to firm up.

To Serve: Deep or shallow fry the cakes in hot oil and serve with garlic mayonnaise. Serves 6

My Favorite Meal

Tagliatelle coi Gamberi e Peperoni

Tagliatelle with Prawns and Peppers

400 g large prawns, shelled and deveined olive oil

2 cloves garlic, chopped

2 fresh red or green chillies, seeded and finely chopped

60 ml chopped fresh sage leaves

1 bottled red pimento, or 1 red pepper, finely sliced

salt and milled black pepper

250 g tagliatelle (preferably home-made)

Heat olive oil in a large frying pan and fry the garlic, chilli and sage until they begin to sizzle.

Add the prawns and stir-fry until almost cooked. Add the pimento or red pepper and heat through (if using red pepper, cook for 1-2 minutes until soft). Season with salt and pepper.

Mpumalanga

Boil the pasta in salted water until cooked 'al dente'. Drain, tip into the frying pan and toss in the sauce until piping hot. Serve immediately.

Serves 4

Pesce ai Ferri alla Moda dell' Adriatico

Italian-Style Grilled Fish

6 x 200 g portions firm, filleted fish, skin on 250 ml olive oil

freshly squeezed juice of 2 lemons 2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

60 ml chopped fresh parsley

60 ml chopped fresh sage leaves salt and milled black pepper extra olive oil for grilling

Place the fish in a non-metal dish. Mix together the olive oil, lemon juice, garlic, parsley and sage, and season with salt and pepper. Pour over the fish and set aside to marinate for at least 4 hours.

Heat a ridged grill pan over high heat, and brush with extra olive oil.

Remove fish from marinade and gril the upper side until golden and well marked. Turn the fish and reduce the heat to cook through gently. (The fist may be braaied over the coals if you prefer.)

Serve with a 144 green salad. Serves 6

Cacciucco

Seafood Casserole

18 large prawns, deveined; heads and shells on

3 crayfish tails, deveined and cut into cubes shells on

18 black mussels, steamed open, shelled and debearded

200 g culamari tubes, well cleaned and sliced into rings

600 g firm white fish, filleted, skinned and cubed

olive oil

4 cloves garlic, finely chopped

3 fresh red or green chillies, seeded and chopped

125 ml chopped fresh parsley

500 ml dry white wine

10 ripe tomatoes, blanched, skinned and chopped

125 ml chopped fresh oregano

salt and milled black pepper

Heat olive oil in a large saucepan and fry the garlic, chili and parsley for 1-2 minutes.

Add the wine and simmer uncovered until reduced by half. Add the tomato and simmer uncovered for about

5 minutes until slightly thickened.

Add the prawns, crayfish, mussels, calamari and fish, and simmer gently uncovered for about 8 minutes until cooked. Add the oregano and season with salt and pepper.

Serve with garlic toast and grated Parmesan cheese.

Serves 6

Pesce con Polenta Kingklip and Polenta Bake

1,2 kg filleted kingklip, skinned and cut into large cubes

olive oil

2 cloves garlic, finely chopped

1 onion, chopped

410 g can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped (don't drain)

250 ml cream

125 ml chopped fresh basil

nutmeg, salt, milled black pepper

Polenta

1,5 litres water

salt

500 ml polenta or maize meal 750 ml grated Pecorino cheese

Heat olive oil in a non-stick frying pan, and fry the kingklip over high heat until sealed on both sides. Remove from the pan and set aside.

Add the garlic and onion to the pan and fry until translucent. Add the tomato and simmer uncovered for 5 minutes.

Add the cream and simmer uncovered for about 3 minutes until the sauce thickens slightly. Add the basil and season with nutmeg, salt and pepper.

Add the kingklip and heat through. Place in a casserole. Set the oven at 180°C.

Polenta: Bring the water to the boil with a little salt in a medium saucepan. Slowly pour in the polenta or maize meal, stirring all the time.

Cook, still stirring, for about 15 minutes until the polenta or maize meal is cooked and comes away from the sides of the pot. Add one third of the Pecorino cheese. Turn into a bread tin and cool.

Unmould the polenta, slice and lay on top of the kingklip. Sprinkle over the remaining cheese and bake for 10-15 minutes until golden.

Serves 6

Simple Seafood Dish

The Montagu's Tomato Essence

50 ml olive oil

1 medium leek, sliced

1 rib celery, chopped

1 carrot, chopped

2 large, ripe tomatoes, chopped

410 g can whole peeled tomatoes, chopped (don't drain)

50 ml tomato puree

300 ml Vegetable Stock (page 211)

5 ml chopped fresh thyme 5 ml chopped fresh basil

2 ml salt

8 whole black peppercorns 20 g (20 ml) soft butter 30 g (30 ml) cake flour

50 g soft butter, cut into small blocks

Heat the olive oil in a medium saucepan, add the leek, celery and carrot and cook very gently until softened.

Add the fresh and canned tomato, cook for 1 minute, then add the tomato purée and vegetable stock.

Bring to the boil, add the thyme, basil, salt and peppercorns, Cover and simmer gently for 2 hours.

Strain the mixture through a fine strainer into a clean saucepan and bring to the boil.

Blend together the butter and flour and whisk in until the tomato essence thickens. Just before serving, whisk in the butter.

Serves 8

Copper Pot's Savoury Prawn Rice

100 g butter

5 cm piece English cucumber, cut into small cubes

1 rib celery, finely chopped

i/2 red pepper, finely chopped

100 ml sliced button mushrooms 100 ml cooked corn kernels

1 tomato, blanched, peeled, seeded and finely cubed

100 g peeled prawns, well drained

on kitchen paper (weigh after shelling) 500 ml cooked rice

30 ml chopped fresh parsley

salt and milled black pepper

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan, add the cucumber, celery, red pepper, mushrooms, corn and tomato and stir-fry for 1-2 minutes (the vegetables should still be crisp).

Add the prawns, cover and cook for about 1 minute. Stir in the rice and parsley, season with salt and pepper and heat through.

Serves 4

Jake's Portuguese Rice

olive oil

1 onion, finely chopped

30 ml chopped fresh parsley 1 clove garlic, crushed

250 ml rice

15 ml tomato paste

salt and milled black pepper 375 ml water

Heat olive oil in a heavy saucepan and fry the onion until translucent.

Stir in the parsley, garlic, rice and tomato paste, season with salt and pepper, then add the water.

Cover, and simmer for about 15 minutes until the rice is cooked and all the liquid has been absorbed.

Serves 6

Bayfront Blu's Kitali Rice

butter

1 onion, diced

1 red pepper, seeded and diced

1 green pepper, seeded and diced 100 g button mushrooms, sliced salt and milled black pepper

750 ml cooked basmati or white rice

Heat butter in a medium saucepan and fry the onion until translucent. Add the red and green pepper and the mushrooms, and season with salt and pepper.

Cover and simmer for 2-3 minutes until the mushrooms are tender. Mix in the rice and heat through.

Serves 4