I lifted this in total from IOMToday. But buried in the details is exciting news — they’re having a Trawler Race. The last one was in 1993, I think. They are such fun. I’ll try and get photos!
It’s the infamous Queenie Festival this weekend so this month Kathryn Sentance, of Relish Cookery School and Catering, met with Tim Croft of Paddy’s Market in Port St Mary to rustle up some lovely queenies with a special twist.. From IOMToday
The things I do for you lot!
In my dedication to food I travelled to the end of the earth. Yes, from Ramsey all the way to….. Port St Mary! There and back in a morning. I’m still recovering.
Watch Kathryn and Tim cook up a quick and spicy Queenie dish on the iomtoday youtube channel: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ycCv5XLIZ8
So why the big trip? To see my old mate Tim Croft at Paddy’s Market, down on the quay in Port St. Mary.
Tim organises the Queenie Festival which returns this weekend, so I thought it’d be nice to get his idea for a summery queenie dish and he could inform us what’s happening in the seafood world.
First up, what great stuff is coming out of the ocean at the moment? The queenie season has just started so fill your boots. Fish to look out for at the moment are hake, brill, turbot, lemon sole and plaice, plus tons of mackerel and herring which are great for cheap and healthy eating. In terms of shellfish, lobster is great at the moment and the crab is just starting to come back in.
————
The big event to put in your diaries is the Queenie Festival – there is tons going on. Here’s a quick summary:
Sure beach party will open the Festival on Port Erin beach tonight (Friday), featuring a Samba band, The Heights and Carbon Frog. To eat there will be a BBQ, squid, queenies, lobster and salads.
And to drink there will be a Bushy’s Beach Bar.
Other activities available will be a treasure hunt, kayaking, diving and snorkelling.
On Saturday and Sunday there will be a Marine Weekend sponsored by Paddys called Hooked on Fish. This will involve a trawler race, Viking Office Systems’ Manx Mile open water swim, food stalls, historical re-enactments, touch tanks thanks to the Manx Wildlife Trust, kite surfing and music and dance.
Click here to find out more: >> www.queeniefestival.com
————
Due to the Queenie Festival, increasing the profile of our fantastic local product, Tim is now selling directly to high-end restaurants all over the UK.
Mark Hix, the London chef of the moment, uses the queenies in several of his venues. They currently feature on the menu as ‘Manx queenies marinated in cucumber and dill’. I know they often roast them in the half-shell too – delicious!
So here is Tim’s recipe. We had fun making this on the quay in Port St Mary. Tim made gorgeous Lime Butter Rice to go with it too, check out the video to learn his secrets.
————
Limed Queenies Flambéed in Tequila
- Generous glug olive oil
- Generous knob butter
- 4 small shallots, finely chopped
- 1 lime, juice and zest only
- 1 tsp sugar
- 2 dozen queen scallops, trimmed and ready to cook. (Use scallops or bay scallops, Kelly.)
- generous glug good-quality tequila (you can drink the rest of the bottle over dinner)
- 1 handful coriander finely chopped
- salt and freshly ground black pepper
————
1. Heat the olive oil and butter in a heavy-bottomed frying pan over a medium heat. Add the shallots and sweat gently – do not allow to brown.
2. Add the lime juice and zest and cook for a minute or two.
3. Add the sugar and stir continuously – it’s important to keep the ingredients moving around the pan at this point to prevent the sugar from burning.
4. Increase the heat to high then add the scallops. Fry for another minute.
5. Add a big glug of tequila and the chopped chives and flambé – if cooking on gas carefully let the flame just catch the pan or if using an electric hob you might need to use a match to ignite the tequila (Errrm health + safety announcement CAUTION: Take care when flambéing the queenies and keep your face well away from the pan. If you’re not an experienced cook you must be aware that this method of cooking can create large flames. We didn’t get any flames going….boo hiss….boring). If the tequila doesn’t light quickly then don’t be tempted to keep the pan on the heat any longer as this will overcook the scallops.
6. Serve the scallops hot from the pan and in warm tortilla wraps or with lime butter rice.
