Pan-fried Fillet of Barramundi, Bulgur Wheat Risotto and Halloumi

When I first started cooking this Barramundi meal, I wasn't sure if it would be suitable for publishing, being a new combination of elements for me, even though I have eaten them all separately before. My goal was to serve perfectly cooked crispy Barramundi fillets with a tasty and low calorie grain dish as a side, and some pan fried halloumi because we love it. This meal  exceeded my expectations and the fish was the perfect protein to serve with the Risotto. 

When in season, Barramundi is one of Australia's favourite fish and is quite readily available. The skin crisps up beautifully and transforms into a golden fish crackling. Fish with crispy skin is for me one of the most delicious ways to serve up some protein on a plate. The flesh is sweet and moist.

I love to cook fish in butter and olive oil. Without the olive oil, the butter will brown too quickly and possible burn, not great for cooking fish, however adding the butter to the olive oil gives the fish a beautiful flavour without the need for anything else in the pan. Butter  makes everything better. I add a sprinkle of salt and black pepper to the fish before adding it to the pan.

Ingredients:

Serves 2

180g/6 oz x 2 fresh Barramundi fillets 

2 tbsp Butter

2 tbsp Olive Oil

3/4 tsp cooking salt

1/4 tsp black pepper

Bulgur Wheat Risotto ingredients (see below)

225 g haloumi, or 1 packet

Method:

Pat the skin of the fish dry with paper towels.

Some fish fillets may be on the thicker side, that is 2.5 cm/1 inch thick, and may be best finished cooking in the oven. However, I have rarely ever done this. The fillets I used in this dish were on the smaller side and cooked beautifully in the pan. This is also another reason why I added haloumi to my dish because the fish fillets weren't large.

I cooked my fish in a smallish non-stick pan.

Sprinkle the flesh of the fish with the salt and pepper just before cooking.

Add the butter and the oil to the pan, over a low to medium heat, until small bubbles appear from the butter, and a small wisp of smoke may be obvious.

Place the fish fillets in the pan, skin side down. Press down lightly on the fish with a spatula for about 10 seconds so that the skin seals against the hot pan.

Cook for 4 minutes, or until the skin is crispy and golden. Lift slightly to check. Cook for another one to two minutes if necessary. Turn the fillets over carefully using a spatula and cook the fish, flesh side down for about two minutes, or until the flesh has turned white and is cooked. Yum!

Rest your fish for 3 minutes on a rack, skin side up.

Bulgur Wheat Risotto

I've given you the ingredients to feed 4 people if necessary with the Risotto as the Barramundi Fillets can easily be stretched to feed 4, as can the haloumi.

Ingredients:

Serves 4

1 onion

1 tablespoon Extra Virgin olive oil

1 large garlic clove, diced or squeezed (optional)

60g bulgur wheat

1/2-1 fresh red chilli or 1/2 tsp chilli flakes (optional)

1 bay leaf

1 red capsicum, deseeded and sliced.

300ml chicken or vegetable stock

2 heaped tablespoons artichokes (from a jar or tin).

A large handful of coriander or parsley, roughly chopped.

Method:

Sweat the onions and garlic in the olive oil in a saucepan. I used a skillet with a lid. Meanwhile rinse the bulgur wheat. 

Add the bulgur or burghal, chilli, bay leaf and capsicum and cover with the stock. Put the lid on and let it simmer for 20-25 minutes or until most of the liquid is absorbed and the bulgur wheat is al dente and ready to eat. It pays to check this after 10 minutes and then every 5 minutes as you may need to add extra stock if it is looking dry. Mine didn't.

Then stir the artichokes into the pan for the last 5-10 minutes of cooking.

Season and stir in half the coriander or parsley, reserving the rest for a garnish.

Pan-fried Halloumi fingers

Halloumi is such a versatile cheese, and I use it a lot in my cooking, as it is firm and becomes golden and holds it's shape well when fried. It also pairs well with so many dishes. I often pan fry halloumi fingers in olive oil and serve them on their own with this Bulgur recipe and a garden salad for a vegetarian option.

It is easy to cook the halloumi in another pan at the same time as the fish is being cooked.

Ingredients:

1x225 g packet of halloumi or whatever size you can buy.

2 tablespoons olive oil

Method:

Slice the halloumi into fingers, 6 for this recipe or for 2 people. If you have a larger piece of cheese, you can cook all the fingers, and then chop up the leftovers to pair with a salad the following day or serve it with some leftover risotto.

Add the olive oil to a medium to hot frying pan. Cook the fingers on both sides for a couple of minutes each, and then remove to rest on a plate covered with a layer of baking paper. 

Assembling the meal:

Spoon serves of the bulgur risotto onto two plates.

Place three slices of halloumi (4 if you wish) onto the risotto.

Carefully place the cooked piece of Barramundi fillet onto the halloumi, skin side up. It is quite a soft fish, so use a firm spatula to do this. Oops, did you notice I didn't do this in my photos, but this is the correct way to serve fish, skin side up.

Garnish with finely chopped parsley.

Cooks notes:

1. There are also some very good frozen packets of Barramundi available in the supermarkets which might be more cost effective for you. The servings are smaller, but when thawed out and cooked in oil and butter, the taste and freshness is very acceptable. This means you can eat Barramundi all year round.
2. Bulgur is also known as burghul, bulghur, or bourghoul with Middle Eastern origins.
3. 180g/6oz is a standard portion size per person for fish, however this depends on the size of the fish caught, and the size of the fillets you can purchase at the supermarket.
4. Other fish that I buy at the fish market where I live that have skin that goes crispy are:

• Salmon
• Wild caught King Salmon
• Bream
• Trevally ( not for a while though)
• Ocean Perch
• Cod

 For some reason, the older I get, the more I love eating fish. Whilst it might seem more expensive than other forms of protein to buy at times, there is no waste with it, and the nutritional benefits are enormous, being packed with protein and omega-3s. Buying it fresh or frozen, means the bones and scales should have been removed. 

I have also cooked fish fillets in my air-fryer on 180 degrees for 15-20 minutes, and they cooked perfectly. Spray the base of the basket well with olive oil, season and cook skin side up for best results.

Warm wishes,  

Pauline