Trini-Style Fish Sandwich with Tamarind Mayo
From Ainsley’s Fantastic Flavours, ITV
Bake and ‘shark’ is a popular beach shack and street food dish throughout the island of Trinidad. The bake refers to the bread which makes the sandwich – they’re often fried but I’m using a soft bread roll and shallow frying my fish (not shark!) for a healthier bite. Caribbean green seasoning is full of fresh herbs and spice and really packs a punch. Add a cooling slice of pineapple to your sandwich if you’re feeling tropical!
Method
Put all of the ingredients for the marinade into a food processor and blitz until well combined, scraping down the sides when needed. Season well.
Put the marinade in a shallow dish and add the fish. Carefully toss to coat, cover and marinate for 20 minutes or chill for up to 1 hr (no longer as lime will start to cook the fish).
Mix the mayonnaise, tamarind, honey and coriander together in a small bowl. Season and add hot sauce to taste. Cover and chill until needed.
Meanwhile, put the flour, allspice, thyme and a good pinch of salt and white pepper into a shallow dish and mix well.
Remove the fish from the marinade and shake off the excess. Dip the fillets into the flour, coating well on both sides and shaking off the excess.
Heat 2-3 tbsp of oil in a heavy-based frying pan over a medium-high heat until hot. Add the fish and reduce the heat to medium. Fry without moving for 3-4 minutes, then carefully flip to cook the other side for 2-3 minutes (depending on the thickness of your fillets), until golden brown and cooked through. Remove from the pan and drain on kitchen paper.
To assemble, spread some spicy tamarind mayo on the bottom of the bread roll. Layer with lettuce, tomato and cucumber and top with a fish fillet and some coriander leaves. Squeeze over some lime juice and add another dollop of mayo and some hot sauce if you like. Close the bun and enjoy with a side of fries.
Ingredients
- For the Green Seasoning Marinade
- large handful of parsley
- large handful of coriander
- 1 small scotch bonnet chilli, deseeded (less if you don’t like things too spicy)
- 2 garlic gloves
- 2 spring onion
- 2 tsp thyme leaves
- juice and zest of 1 ½ limes
- 1 tbsp light olive oil
- sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- For the Fish
- 4 fillets of sustainable flaky white fish (approx. 150g each), skinless, boneless, cleaned
- 120g of plain flour
- 1 tsp thyme leaves
- ½ tsp allspice
- ground white pepper
- oil for frying
- For the Spicy Tamarind Mayo
- 5-6 tbsp mayonnaise
- 1-2 tbsp tamarind sauce or paste
- 1 tsp runny honey
- 1 tbsp finely chopped coriander
- Caribbean Hot Pepper Sauce, to taste
- To Serve
- 4 large soft bread rolls, sliced open
- chopped crispy lettuce leaves
- 1 large tomato, sliced
- ¼ cucumber, sliced
- ½ lime, for squeezing