A note on Basa

They call it Dory (Pacific?) in Malaysian hypermarkets. But that is false advertising. Its actually a type of catfish that thrives on sewerage. Read this article.

Hoki vs Barramundi

Both taste good: Barramundi is more delicate but costs more. Hoki will be a preferred choice in future. Just stay away from the Basa... they are actually a type of catfish (taste of mud). Hoki is surprsingly good: nice firm texture akin to cod. Versatile for all sorts of dishes. Below extracts from internet sources. Sounds like it goes well with a squeeze of lemon juice.
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Barramundi flesh is white and moist with a medium to firm texture and fairly large flakes. The flavour is mild, subtle and highly prized. Barramundi are very versatile when it comes to cooking: they can be fried, grilled, char-grilled, barbecued, steamed, wrapped in banana leaves or paper bark and cooked on hot coals, or just dropped straight on a fire.

Barramundi is best served with a good Australian wine, such as Semillon Chardonnay or a WA classic dry white. Another good Australian wine is Jimmy Watson's 1994 Cabernet Shiraz.
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Hoki (Blue grenadier) has a delicate, sweet, succulent flavour. When raw, its flesh is soft and requires careful handling. It is most suited to frying or baking because of the low oiliness of the species, but it is also excellent for grilling or barbecuing.

If frying blue grenadier fillets, a light batter or crumb is best. Serve these with a strongly flavoured citrus aioli and crisply fried basil leaves for both flavour and presentation. Try deep frying and serving with chips.

Blue grenadier is also an ideal finfish to include in fish cakes, served with sweet chilli or soy and coriander dipping sauces.

Flavour: Mild
Oiliness: Low
Texture: Soft to medium, Delicate; tends to flake easily into medium flakes
Suggested Wines
Although lightly flavoured, the blue grenadier is flavoursome when baked, requiring crisp, acidic wine styles. To enhance the flavours try one of the young white styles from the cooler regions of Western Australia, Victoria or Tasmania.

This Weekend's Project

ROAST LEG OF LAMB

1 bottle red wine
1 1/2 tbsp. rosemary
2 cloves elephant ear garlic, crushed
1 tsp. pepper
4-6 lb. boneless leg of lamb

Mix wine, rosemary, garlic and pepper together then pour over lamb. Marinate overnight. Preheat oven to 500 degrees. Remove lamb from marinade, place in roasting pan and put in oven then turn heat down to 325 degrees. Bake until done approximately 16 minutes per pound. Serve with minted rice (rice with chopped fresh mint).

Fish Batter

Here is something that worked out very, very well. Chuck in any fish, even those stinky Basa fillets from Vietnam, they will come out surprisingly good.

All-Purpose Deep Frying Batter

Ingredients:
1 cup all-purpose Flour
1 tsp Baking Powder
1/2 cup Cornstarch
1 cup Water
2 tsp Salt
1 tsp Sugar
1 tsp Oil


Directions:
Mix all of the ingredients together and blend until there are no lumps. Preheat the oil in your deep fat fryer to the proper temperature for the food you are cooking. Dry the fish with a paper towel and dip into the batter. Place in the hot oil one piece at a time. Try to keep the pieces from colliding until the batter has had a chance to set (which it does almost instantly). Cook until the batter has turned a golden brown, remove to a paper towel to drain and serve at once. Serving size: enough for about 2 pounds of fish.