Cajun-spiced salmon and prawns with Cornbread fritters
Wonderfully warming, with a hint of heat from the Cajun seasoning mix, this makes for a fast weeknight meal that is full of punchy flavour. Serve it with these light cornmeal pancakes to mop up the last of the sauce.
Ingredients
For the Cajun-spiced Salmon and Prawns:
2 salmon fillets, cut in half
300g raw prawns, defrosted
4 Tbsp vegetable oil
4 tsp Farro Cajun seasoning mix
3 Tbsp flour
1 onion, finely chopped
1 celery stick, finely chopped
1 green capsicum, finely chopped
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
1 bay leaf
2 Tbsp tomato paste
500mls fish stock
120g baby spinach
For the Cornbread Fritters:
¾ cup instant polenta
¼ cup plain flour
1 tsp sugar
½ tsp baking soda
1 tsp baking powder
½ tsp salt
2 eggs
25g melted butter
1 cup buttermilk
1½ cups frozen corn, defrosted
Ghee or clarified butter for frying
Bellefield chilli and lime cultured butter, to serve
Method
For the Cajun-spiced Salmon and Prawns:
Place the salmon and prawns onto a tray. Mix together 1 tablespoon oil and 2 teaspoons of the cajun seasoning mix. Coat the seafood and set aside to marinate while you make the sauce (this can be done overnight if you prefer).
In a wide saucepan, heat 2 tablespoons of oil until hot, then add the flour, lower the heat, and whisk constantly for 5 minutes, until the mix has begun to darken and smells nutty. Remove from the heat and add the onion, celery, capsicum, garlic, bay leaf, tomato paste, and remaining 2 teaspoons cajun seasoning mix
Return to the heat, stirring until the vegetables are covered in the flour mix. Cook for 3-4 minutes, then slowly add in the fish stock and bring to a simmer. Allow the mix to thicken slightly over a low heat for 10 -15 minutes while you fry the seafood and make the cornbread fritter batter.
Heat the remaining oil in a frying pan and pan fry the salmon and prawns to colour (they don’t need to be completely cooked through), then add to the pan with the sauce. Cook for 3-4 minutes until heated through. In the same frying pan, wilt the spinach and add it to the sauce.
Serve with the cornbread fritter and wedges of pan-fried lime.
For the Cornbread Fritters:
In a large bowl, whisk together the polenta, flour, sugar, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl or jug, whisk together the eggs, melted butter, and buttermilk. Add the wet ingredients to the dry and stir until just combined. Stir through the corn.
Heat a frying pan and add some ghee or clarified butter. In batches, drop spoonfuls of batter into the pan and fry for 2-3 minutes until you see bubbles on the surface. Flip and cook for another 2-3 minutes or so. Serve warm with plenty of chilli lime butter.