The beauty of living by the sea! Not bragging or anything, maybe a little, but the sea gives me an amazing view to look at everyday and on top of that, access to the freshest fish.
I went fishing today, ok maybe not fishing in a traditional sense. I went to the harbour to buy fish from the local Fishermen. If I want fresh whole fish, I go to Kalk bay harbour ( in the Southern Peninsula of the Western Cape) to visit the always very smiling and willing to negotiate the price fishermen and women. They even gut and fillet the fish for you if you want.
I was looking for the Cape Salmon specifically but no one seems to have caught any today. They do have a few options though; Red Roman, Tuna, Silverfish and the Hottentot sea bream. The seals are giving us quite a performance as well. I settled on tuna, it should go perfectly with my Samp and beans as an alternative. It looks very good, eyes totally clear and bright, skin very shiny as well! This is truly from the sea to my table. My tuna was caught this morning from our shores. And I got it for a good price.
To partner my fish tonight, will be a South African traditional Samp and Beans, which we grow locally. This is staple in all the Nguni tribes, only the names are different. In Zulu, we call it ‘Is’tambu’, the Xhosa tribe call it ‘uMngqusho’. It is also said that this was Nelson Mandela’s favourite meal!
Growing up we ate it with beef bones, full of marrow. Such delicious memories. But most people usually enjoy it with red meat such as lamb or oxtail. But tonight I’m trying it with fish. The delicate nature of fish, should go beautifully with the rich Samp and beans.
So for dinner: Samp and Beans served with baked lemon and garlic Tuna topped with Hollandaise sauce.
Serves 4. Cooking time: 2 1/2 hrs.
What do you need?
– Samp. – Sugar beans. – Tuna fish
– Veggies- onions, peppers( red/yellow/ green), lettuce and horse radish for presentation, garlic
– 3 eggs, butter, vinegar, white wine, lemon juice, zest and wedges.
– Spices- chili flakes, masala, chicken stock cube, pepper
What to do?
-Samp and Beans- cup of each- overnight soak Samp and beans in water. This halves the cooking time. Boil them in salty water until soft and tender, then drain excess liquid- Usually takes 2 hrs to cook. Then into hot pot with a slice of margarine and 2 tbs of olive oil, add onions and soften, then peppers. Then add the mixture and combine, add masala spice, season with chicken stock cube. When all mixed well, take off stove and crush or muddle with a clean glass bottle, a wine bottle works best. This breaks it down a little to ensure it’s not too course. This is not mashing or making a purée!
– Fish- clean and fillet fish. Then place in foil and add mixture of garlic, lemon juice, salt and pepper. Place lemon wedges around the fish, margarine on top of the fish then lemon zest and wrap foil. Place in oven at 230 deg for 30min, for a moist and delicate result.
– Hollandaise sauce. This is one of those you need to follow the recipe closely for. My recipe is from: http://www.ehow.com/how_13904_make-hollandaise-sauce.html. It is very delicious
Then dish up and serve. Use green salad and horse radish to add some texture and for presentation. This is traditional, rustic and delicious, just like how my mother used to make it.
NB: Crushing or muddling is not a traditional way of making Samp and beans, but after frequent toilet difficulties my family suffered after eating it, my mother came up with crushing it and it works!
mypreciouskitchen 
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