Oh Man, Not Fish Again! | 101 Ways to Cook Queenfish

For some reason there was a period of time when all we could catch were giant queenfish. And these things are exactly that, GIANT! By catching them, you are committing to a few very fish-filled days. They have a really firm flesh, almost like a chicken breast so it was a nice change from the boring old reef fish we had been catching. I know, I know, how dare I say that about fresh reef fish. You’ll get over it.

If there is one thing we are good at on the Flying Nimbus, it is eating.

Having a surplus of the one kind of fish isn’t a bad thing as long as you know what to do with it. As much as we love fish and chips it isn’t the only way to dish up a fishie affair. Ok so maybe this isn’t quite 101 ways but here are 5 of our favourite ways of cooking and eating giant queenie.

SMOKEY BBQ QUEENFISH “RIBS”

Rub Ingredients:

2 tsp minced garlic
2 tsp paprika
1 tsp cumin
2 tsp salt
ground pepper
chill flakes
2 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp powdered smoke (This right here is my secret weapon. AMAZING stuff! I got mine here https://thespicepeople.com.au/shop/powdered-smoke-hickory-blend/)

Cut your queenie fillets into long rib like pieces and coat in your combined rub ingredients.

Bake at 200 degrees celsius for 15-20 minutes.

Glaze Ingredients:

3 tbsp BBQ sauce
1 tbsp olive oil
1 tsp worcestershire sauce

Brush your glaze over the “ribs” and put back in the oven to cook until sticky (about 15 minutes).

A good slaw and some garlic toast makes this a southern style feast.

Yee Ha! Might as well be at a Texas BBQ!

CHAR SIU QUEENIE RICE PAPER ROLLS

I have spoken before about this amazing sauce sent from the Asian Gods. If you didn’t listen the first time, do yourself a favour and get some now.

Rice paper rolls are a fav on board and so soooo easy!

Soak your queenfish pieces in some soy sauce for about 10-15 minutes.

Fry in some olive oil until cooked and golden then turn off the heat and spoon in some char sui sauce. Toss around and the residual heat will loosen up the sauce to perfectly coat the fish.

Cut your sticky char siu fish and any of your vegetables into slices ready to roll up in rice paper.

Dipping sauce: 1/2 tsp minced garlic, 1 tsp sweet chilli sauce, 1/4 cup soy sauce, 2 tbsp water, 1 tsp sesame oil. And extra sesame seeds because they are amazing and more is always better.

GINGER & SESAME QUEENIE DUMPLINGS

I definitely have a thing for dumplings. Pretty stoked to have discovered I can carry wonton wrappers in the fridge for when dumpling cravings strike.

I had some leftover queenie that I had soaked in soy then fried until golden.

Perfect dumpling opportunity.

Filling Ingredients:

1 onion, finely chopped
1 carrot, finely chopped
~6 button mushrooms, finely chopped
1 tsp ginger
1 tsp garlic
~1.5 cups leftover soy cooked queenfish, finely chopped
2 tsp sesame oil
handful chives, finely chopped

Fry off all veggies until golden. Add in ginger, garlic, fish and chives. Cook together for a minute or so then add in sesame oil.

Spoon into wonton wrappers and use water to seal edges.

I chose to pan fry mine as it seemed easier. Pop a drizzle of olive oil in the pan and give them few minutes on each side.

Viola! Dumpling perfection!

Alongside I also made some buttery, garlic edamame, because well…. Food is life!

Also, pro tip. They taste better when using chopsticks.

NACHOS QUEENIE STYLE

This was really just a bit of a throw together when all the avocados were ripening at once. Now, that is a situation that should not be taken lightly.

One must never simply throw away an avocado! That is basically a crime against humanity.

So something with guacamole was on the menu… Another favourite on SV Nimbi are nachos. What’s not to like right???

Lay out your tortilla chips on a tray and grate some cheese over the top. Pop then in the oven for the cheese to melt and become slightly golden.

Filling Ingredients:

Queenie, cut into small strips (about 1.5 cups worth)
olive oil, for frying
1 onion, finely diced
1 clove garlic, finely chopped
2 tsp smoked paprika
2 tsp cumin
1/2 tsp oregano
salt and pepper
1/4 cup nutritional yeast (honestly if you haven’t tried this yet, get out from under your rock and start putting it in everything!)
some water to add as the mixture gets a little dry

Fry off your onion and garlic then add in the queenfish along with all the other ingredients. Add a little more oil as needed to coat the fish in all the spices.

Fry until fish is cooked through and golden. Add a little water to create more of a sticky sauce as you cook.

Spoon over the top of your cheesy tortilla chips and top with whatever you desire. We like shredded lettuce, pico de gallo (chopped tomatoes, red onion, lime juice and fresh coriander), guacamole and sour cream.

Yep, now I am just making myself hungry.

POPCORN QUEENIE BITES

Have gone to the Colonel for some inspo to recreate a fishie version of the KFC classic.

Popcorn chicken is so 2019.

First of all, cut your fish into appropriately sized popcorn bites.

You want to do the normal dredging scenario EXCEPT not with boring old bread crumbs.

First dip in flour, then milk, then a mixture of panko bread crumbs, bacon seasoning and nutritional yeast.

A trio made in heaven.

And yes. You read correctly.. bacon seasoning.

These are my not-so-secret herbs and spices.

Per cup of bread crumbs you want about 1-2 teaspoons of bacon seasoning and a decent 1/4 cup of nutritional yeast.

This bacon seasoning is found in the herbs and spices section in Woolies. Thank me later.

Once you have dredged all your bites, just fry until crispy and golden. SO SIMPLE!

It may not look glamorous, but don’t judge a book before opening it’s crispy, fried, delicious cover.

Happy eating!!

Until next time.