Young's Seafood Event, L'atelier Des Chefs

A few weeks ago,Young's Seafood invited me along to their Blogging Seafood Event hosted at L'atelier des Chefs, in the very plush area of Marylebone.

Young's Seafood on Display pre-filleting 

My reason for attending? I enjoy eating fish as part of a healthy, balanced diet, but was looking for further inspiration for fish-based dishes. Well, I was in the right place along with some lovely lady bloggers; Amanda, Sian, Maria and Sharon.
The afternoon started off with some fishy facts delivered by the very informative Nutrition Director, Clare Leonard.
Here, are just a few of them:

• Oily fish is the best dietary source of omega 3
• Our bodies cannot easily make omega 3, so we rely on foods naturally rich in omega 3 i.e. Mackerel, Trout, Salmon and Tuna to provide this fat 
• White fish such as Sea Bass, Cod, Plaice, Sole and Pollock are low in fat and saturated fat
• Children who eat more fish oils have improved concentration, spelling and reading
• Fish is a great source of protein
• Fish is packed with vitamins and minerals;Vitamin D needed to strengthen teeth and bones while vitamin A is required for healthy skin and eyes. Zinc is necessary to boost the immune system and is often found in shellfish. 
• We need 1-2 grams of omega-3 each week. This normally translates as 2 portions of fish per week.
• Frozen food significantly reduces food waste, with 75% of us claiming to rarely or never throw frozen food away.

It was now time to do some tasting and Chef Serge Nollent (Young's resident chef) presented us with some samples of Young's current product range:

 Left to Right: "Chip Shop Mackrel" on crouton, Whole Scampi, King Prawn Salad
with Pomegranate,Mango and Spinach leaves, Breaded Cod and tartare sauce

The Mackerel was added to their product range following the "Big Fish Fight" campaign, championed by Hugh Fearnley-Whittingstall. This was a nice little taster to introduce the range. I particularly liked the quality and the juiciness of the King Prawns against the luscious notes of mango. It wasn't too long before Seafood Specialist, Duncan Lucas, set to work on his knife skills. It is quite remarkable how he made the job of filleting, pin boning and cutting supremes of salmon look relatively easy. His portions were incredibly precise while he recounted anecdotes of his experience in the fishing industry. This salmon was then passed on to Serge, to use his gastronomic flare to come up with:

Salmon Fillet with lightly spiced Garlic and Herb Butter and Wilted
 Spinach served on a bed of Saffron flavoured Couscous.

The salmon was beautifully moist with just a taste of the Mediterranean coming through with the lemon flavouring. Delicieux!
This is how Serge delighted us with this dish:

Portion Control:
Serves 4Ingredients:4 portions of 100-120g of salmon (with skin off)400g of spinach leaves 200g couscous250ml of boiling water 1 sachet of saffron1 diced red onion1 diced tomato½ lemon juice salt 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil 1 tbsp of chopped coriander
Spiced garlic & herb butter:Mix 100g of butter, 2 garlic cloves chopped finely, 1 tsp of chopped red chilli, 1 tsp of chopped parsley, chives, coriander.Extra virgin olive oil.Directions:

• Preheat oven gas mark 6/ 200c
• Place couscous into a heatproof bowl with saffron, olive oil, seasoning, add boiling water stir and cover with a plate. Leave to stand for 10 minutes. Separate grain with a fork.
• In a medium size frying or roasting pan wilt spinach with olive oil, place salmon on top and add knobs of butter around fish. Add salt to season.
• Cook in middle of oven for 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile finish couscous by sautéing onion and tomato in olive oil for a couple of minutes and then add coriander, lemon juice. Heat and stir until hot. Serve. 

Next, on the menu was cod and I was really surprised at the size of this specimen! Enormous! We sampled the Icelandic delicacy of cod's cheeks, sauted in butter and seasoned with salt and pepper. I must say, as nice as they were, I much preferred the fresh langoustine prepared by Chef Serge. Perhaps it was because we did not follow Icelandic tradition to the letter and bury the cheeks in the ground for 7 years before trying them? Mmmm... I think I'll be leaving that option to the Icelanders. Serge worked his magic to prepare the following Cod based dish:

Roast Cod with Cider Braised Leeks, Peas and Pancetta

Here is how:
Portion Control: Serves 4
Ingredients:4 fillets/ portions 100-120 g each with skin off50g of diced pancetta 1 leek cut into rings 100g of frozen peas Olive oil 25g of butter 150ml of medium dry cider3 tbsp of crème fraiche 1tbsp of chopped parsleySea salt & ground black pepper

Directions:

• Preheat oven gas mark 6/200c
• In a medium size frying or roasting pan fry the pancetta, add leek, peas and stir
• Add the cider when you are happy that the pancetta is looking cooked and the leeks are beginning to soften .
• Place the cod on top and season with salt in moderation (the pancetta is already salty).
• Cook in the middle of the oven for 10 minutes
• Remove, add crème fraiche stir carefully
• Replace in oven and cook for a further 10 minutes
• Remove from oven add parsley stir carefully and serve. 

The bloggers were assigned dishes to make during the event and low and behold, I was pleased to have been allocated this one.I think the ingredients of leek, pancetta,cod and cider really complement each other. I have made this dish a couple of times since the event, replacing crème fraiche with 0% fat greek yoghurt. I also either serve with crusty bread or rice to soak up the delicious juices.
The other team made the dish below:

Smoked Haddock, Cheese and Tomato Bake

I am planning to make this dish tonight and I'm already loosening my belt!
Ingredients and directions can be found here.
The added bonus of these dishes is that they only take minutes to prepare and cook. Approximately 30 minutes in total.
I was always under the impression that if you cannot source fish directly from a fishmonger,then it is best to purchase them from the chilled cabinet at the supermarket. I was even more dismayed when HFW's  "Big Fish Fight" programme revealed that the fish counters at supermarkets display fish that have previously been frozen. This makes buying frozen fish a viable alternative.All Young's fish comes from sustainable sources and carry the "Fish for Life" logo denoting their support and contribution towards long term sustainability.
To end a really enjoyable afternoon, my name was chosen as the winner of a Le Creuset 3 Piece Saucepan Set. Hurrah! I can assure you, I did not waste any time putting them to good use!
I would like to extend my thanks to Elisa for introducing me to the team at Young's Seafood and for some truly wonderful, tasty and inspiring dishes.
If you are looking for some ideas and fancy a change from the bog standard Tuna Nicoise Salad, head over to Young's Recipe Finder and select a more flavour packed dish.
Bon Appétit!x