Spanish style baked megrim with balsamic beans

Larne woman Arlene Thompson, of Sainbury’s Try Team, this week urges: “Why not try something new like megrim, a beautiful fish flat fish from the turbot family and makes a good alternative to Dover sole or plaice?”

Here she shows how to cook delicately flavoured megrim served with a mix of tasty beans.

Serves: 2

Preparation time: 20 minutes Cooking time: 15 minutes

10 slices Taste The Difference Iberico chorizo bellota

1 bunch of fresh basil

2 whole megrim sole, only available from the fish counter

Olive oil

1 bunch of fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 garlic clove, peeled

1 lemon

1 small red onion, peeled

4 tablespoons balsamic vinegar

400g tin cannellini beans

230g tin chopped tomatoes

70g bag wild rocket

1. Pre-heat the oven to 220C, fan 200C, gas 7 and get a large frying pan on a medium-high heat.

2. Lay the slices of chorizo in the frying pan and throw in a few basil leaves. Let the chorizo get crispy, then transfer to a plate for later. Leave the pan on the heat.

3. Lay the megrim flat on a board with the thickest side facing up and score them 5 times at regular intervals, going right down to the bone. Sprinkle over a pinch of salt and freshly ground black pepper then lay the fish in the frying pan, scored-side down. Add a splash of oil, if needed, and fry until the skin is crispy.

4. Meanwhile, pick and roughly chop most of the basil and all of the parsley leaves. Finely grate the garlic and the zest of the lemon on top of the herbs, then chop and mix together.

5. Sprinkle half the herbs into the bottom of an ovenproof dish, big enough to hold both megrim, then lay them on top, scored-side up. Sprinkle the remaining herbs over the top, then squeeze over the juice of half-a-lemon and drizzle with a little olive oil. Cook in the hot oven for about 10 minutes, or until the flesh can easily be pulled away from the bone.

6. Meanwhile, roughly chop the red onion and add it to the empty frying pan and fry for 2 minutes. Add the balsamic and let it bubble down until it is sticky, then add the cannellini beans and the juice from the tin, along with the chopped tomatoes and a good pinch of black pepper. Heat through for a few minutes and, once bubbling, stir through the rocket until it has wilted.

7. Pour the beans on to a platter, dot around the crispy slices of chorizo to add some amazing crunch and lay the cooked megrim on top. Scatter over the remaining basil leaves.

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