Grilling

This is a method of cooking not often used by Australians at home. At the restaurant we do use it, where we grill (broil) mainly fish and shellfish under a hot salamander (a commercial grill). Grilling (broiling) is similar to barbecuing except the heat comes from above. It is primarily a wonderful way to cook flat fish, which I think explains why it is more commonly used in the United States than here, where they have many delicious flat fish. Although we have flounder and sole, we would probably not count them among our most popular eating fish either at home or in a restaurant. We can, of course, all grill very successfully at home because every oven has an element where the heat comes from above, and half the time in my house it is used to make toast when a thick slice of sourdough bread won’t fit in the toaster. I remember when I was young that we had an old stove that had a grill (broiler) drawer on top of the oven, and underneath the elements. It was an old electric range, and it really was fantastic to cook on. Mum would heat it up, pull the drawer out and cook steaks and lamb chops and cutlets on it. It was really the preferred method of cooking chops because it made the tails really crispy. The fat would melt away and drip through the slotted tray onto another tray below, giving you low-fat cooking, perfect for the mixed grill. This was, in a way, the prototype for the George Foreman grill, yummy low-fat cooking. I only wish I had realised it then and taken out the patent. You have the same basic set up now in all ovens, but it really is a pain leaving the door ajar as you are supposed to and I really liked the grill drawer – we would use it all the time and you could cook without bending. Anyway, Dad didn’t really use this superb invention for cooking fish. He would usually pan-fry, deep-fry or barbecue our fish. Much later, when I started cooking in restaurants, I realized what a valuable method it was to cook and keep fresh fish moist. So, all you need is an oven with a grill, a tray for cooking and some fresh fish. I will explain the basic grilling method and a couple of variations, and you can cook and pair the seafood with simple light sauces and yummy vegetables and salads as you wish.