Monkfish Kebabs with Starfruit Chutney

Woah! It's been a while. Sorry about that. To anyone who's still following this blog, I've been really busy moving to a new state for the past few weeks which is why I didn't post anything. So I thought, since it's been so long since my last post, let's make it something really special. I went to the local international market (because I have one of those now!) to get inspiration and saw cheap starfruits. I'd always wanted to make a starfruit chutney so this dish was sort of born from that idea and just from wandering around the store. 

If you've never heard of monkfish, you're not the only one. A lot of people I know have never heard of it. It's really meaty, but the actual flavor itself is rather delicate, rather like shellfish. Apparently it's a good fish for the grill, which is where I got the idea for marinating and grilling it. 

To make this recipe you'll need:

Chutney

2 tbsp coconut oil

2 starfruits 

2 cloves of garlic

1 tbsp grated galangal root

1 3" cinnamon stick

1 tsp cumin seeds

1/2 tsp ground coriander

1/2 tsp cayenne pepper

1/4 tsp ground cloves

4 tbsp sugar

1 cup water

2 tsp cornstarch

Monkfish 

1 1/2lbs monkfish filllet

Salt

2 inch knob of ginger, juiced

2 inch knob of galangal, juiced

3  starfruit juiced

1 orange, juiced

2 red Thai chilies, chopped into circles 

Curry Marinade

2 fingers grated fresh turmeric

1 inch knob of ginger, grated

1 clove garlic, grated

3 tbsp yogurt

1 tbsp chopped fresh dill

1/2 tsp chipotle powder

1/2 tsp black cumin seeds 

1/2 tsp garam masala

1/2 tsp ajwain seeds

Juice of half a lemon

1/2 tbsp of honey

First, make the chutney. You can do this a day in advance, since it only gets better as it sits in the fridge. Melt the coconut oil in a wok and fry off the cumin and cinnamon until fragrant, about 1-2 minutes.

Add the garlic and galangal and cook until fragrant, about another 1-2 minutes. You can tell when it's ready because it will smell amazing. 

Next, add the Starfruit and the ground spices. Cook the starfruit for a few minutes, tossing to coat with the spices and oil. 

Add the sugar, lemon juice, and water and simmer for 20-30 minutes, breaking up the starfruit pieces as they soften. If the liquid doesn't thicken on its own, use 2 tsp of cornstarch and 5 tsp of the chutney liquid to make a slurry and add that to the chutney and cook it to thicken. 

Once it tastes done and is thickened enough, put it in a jar and put it in the fridge to cool down for 6 hours to overnight. As you can see, I used an old molasses jar for mine, but any clean jar will work.  

Now start on the fish. Salt it about half an hour before it marinades to draw out the water. Then, rinse off the salt, pat dry and marinade for 30 minutes in the orange, Starfruit, ginger, and galangal juices. If the fish sticks out like mine, turn every 10 minutes. 

While that's marinating, prepare the second marinade. Mix together the ingredients for the second marinade in a large bowl. When the fish is done in the first marinade, take it out, pat it dry, and cut it into 1 inch chunks. Toss the pieces in the second marinade then leave them to sit for an hour. 

Once there's 5 minutes left, go warm up the grill. Let it heat up while you thread the fish into skewers. Make sure your grill is hot enough before you add the fish or it'll stick. Cook the fish for 3-5 minutes on each side. 

Serve with roasted cauliflower, carrot and fennel salad, and of course, a generous serving of the Starfruit chutney.