Dog and bone
Whole Asian Roasted Snapper . Photo: Fiona Feasey
The “dog and bone” is Cockney for phone, yet the word “bone” conveys numerous meanings and associations other than the anatomical structure we automatically think of.
Bone china, for example, is about 50 per cent calcined bone ash. The wishbone of our roast chicken represents good luck to the person who breaks off the bigger piece. Bones are music to the ears when a tibia bone is turned into a flute. Other bones are made into whistles and pegs for harps. Jewellery made from bone has been fashionable throughout history, and it still is today. People who pronounce they can “feel it in their bones” may be referring to doom and gloom, or to the impending weather. In areas of Africa, skilled bone throwers hurl a selection of bones into the air and the solution to a dilemma is read in the way that they land. And, of course, the delightful words “ham on the bone” invoke happy gastronomic associations.
There is an old saying: “The closer the bone, the sweeter the meat” and this is so very true. It seems strange that cavemen might have eaten more flavourful meat than we do in the 21st century. They needed the bone to hold the meat together as it roasted over an open fire. Today we search the supermarket shelves for boneless meat for convenience’s sake. If we continue with this trend we will soon have a generation of kids who have never seen a wishbone (how sad is that?) nor munched their way through a pile of spare ribs. Will this generation ever know the joys of carving a roast at the head of the table for their family to enjoy together?
Jennifer McLagan says in her book, Cooking on the Bone, that “we need to familiarize ourselves with the whole animal again. When we understand where the bones are, we will be able to cook the meat attached to them. And in a world where resources are increasingly limited, we must learn to value the entire animal.”
I was raised on a beef and dairy farm. We barbecued a lot over summer. Steaks and chops made a regular appearance, each chop containing that one precious bite of bone marrow, a delicacy at which many now screw up their noses.
Bones make stock, and with stock we have soup, nourishment, warmth and the basis of a multitude of meals. Fish on the bone is a true delight, and a whole fish is a great thing caught yourself or picked up from Guyton’s on a trip to Nelson. Whole snapper is perfect and is much cheaper than buying just the fillets. Whole fish works well with Asian flavours, and when left to marinate overnight in this sweet chilli concoction you will be rewarded by a show-stopper of a dinner.
This recipe is Al Brown’s and it is VERY good. He serves it with an Asian-style coleslaw, but plain rice and some briefly sautéed broccoli is also good.
Whole Asian Roasted Snapper
2kg snapper, gutted and scaled
½ cup of light soy sauce
1 tablespoon of hoisin sauce
1 tablespoon oyster sauce
1 teaspoon of sesame oil
60g palm sugar
3 red chillis, thinly sliced
30g fresh ginger, peeled and finely sliced into thin strips
6 kaffir lime leaves, spines removed and finely sliced
½ cup of finely chopped coriander stems
Place the fish on a chopping board and use a sharp knife to slice through the flesh to the bone, first on the diagonal one way across the fish and then the other way, producing a diamond pattern. Place the fish into a roasting dish. Combine the remaining ingredients in a bowl and stir together. Pour on to the fish and rub into the slices and the cavity. Cover and refrigerate overnight. When ready to cook, heat the oven to 200°C. Slice two limes and place the slices into the cavity. Pour one cup of water into the roasting dish and roast for around 20 minutes. To check for “doneness,” check the fish’s eye. It should be white, and the flesh on the thickest part of the fish should no longer “bounce” when pressed. Remove the fish from the oven and allow to rest in the baking dish for five minutes. Place onto a large platter and serve with a flourish.
Fiona Feasey
