Seafood on the BBQ
Every time I cook seafood on the BBQ I ask myself why I don’t do it more often. This Greek inspired Sea Bream certainly hit the spot and I will be cooking it again.
I stumbled upon a fantastic article from @BBQVentures, which gave me the inspiration to cook some fish this week. It really is worth a read. Bill gives some seasonal suggestions, month-by-month, of the different seafood you can try on your grill.
I wasn’t sure what fish I was going to cook, but I wanted to do something with a Greek influence. The only while fish they had in Waitrose was Sea Bream. I got them to gut it and also take the scales off. I have taken scales off myself before, but I was finding them all over the kitchen days later, so I would recommend you getting your fishmonger to do all the hard work.
Preparation and the Cook
I started by preparing the Sea Bream. I made the marinade and then made 3 incisions into each side of the Sea Bream and then covered it in the marinade for 30 minutes. This is the Greek-inspired bit, with the ingredients for the fish including Olive Oil, White Wine Vinegar, Greek Oregano, Lemon and Garlic.
In the meantime, I started to prep the BBQ. As a late decision, I decided to used the Char-Broil Professional 4600S to cook this dish. Whilst I have previously cooked fish on the BBQ, I have not used the Char-Broil before, and was intrigued to see how the Infrared-system would cook the fish.
As always, I started by getting the temperature of the BBQ to 180°C by putting both burners on. Once up to temp I turn one of the burners off so I have a direct and indirect zone on the grill.
When the temp was at 180°C, I placed some cherry wood chips from Smokewood Shack. One thing I really like about the Infrared-system on the Char-broil is that you can put wood chips directly onto the grate to produce additional smoke for added flavour.
With the Char-Broil being up-to temp, I started to cook the Sea Bream on the indirect side of the BBQ, turning after 8 minutes. At this stage, I started to cook the Gem Lettuce but on the direct side of the grill. I cooked the fish and lettuce for another 7 minutes. Turn the lettuce occasionally so you get a nice char but avoid burning.
Remove and plate up. I decided to spoon some home-made Tzatziki over the lettuce and sprinkle some Pomegranate Seeds over the whole dish.
The Verdict
Bill’s article certainly gave me the inspiration to cook fish again and it is something I really need to do more often. The Sea Bream came out great and tasted really fresh. I loved the greek inspired flavours on the fish and this is another recipe that will get repeated.
Like everything I have cooked on the Char-Broil, it does it really well. That Infrared-system is really quite impressive!
Greek Inspired Sea Bream
Ingredients
- 1 Sea Bream
- 2 tbsp Olive Oil (extra virgin)
- 1 tbsp White Wine Vinegar
- 1 tsp Greek Oregano ('normal' Oregano is fine)
- 1 Lemon (rind)
- 1/2 Lemon (juiced)
- 2 Garlic Cloves
Instructions
- Mix together the Olive Oil, White Wine Vinegar, Oregano, Lemon Rind, Lemon Juice and Garlic in a bowl. I discovered the Ceramic Garlic Grater Plate a few months ago – really great for making a garlic paste for marinades.
- Place the Sea Bream on a chopping board and make 3 incisions on each side. Transfer to a dish large enough to hold the fish and liberally cover with the marinade. Make sure you rub it into the cavity and the slits made on both sides. Place to one side for 30 minutes.
- Whilst the fish is marinating, light your BBQ and get the temperature up to around 180°C. Set it up so you have an indirect area to cook the fish on.
- Once your BBQ is up to temperature, lightly oil the grates on the indirect side of the BBQ and then add the Sea Bream. Spoon over some of the marinade onto the fish. At this stage add any wood chunks or chips you want to use.
- Cook for around 8 minutes and then turn over the Sea Bream and cook for another 7 minutes. You are looking for a temperature of around 65°C, but if you go a little higher it will be fine. Remove the fish, plate up and serve.On this occasion I served the Sea Bream with some grilled Gem Lettuce, home-made Tzatziki and some Pomegranate Seeds.
