BLUE COD WITH ZUCCHINI, FERMENTED CHILLI, LEMON & DIAMOND SHELL CLAMS

Food Ryan Henley / Photography Dean Kozanic

	2 red chillies, seeds removed
	200g vine tomatoes
	4g sea salt
	60g butter
	2 shallots, finely diced
	2 whole pot-caught small blue cod (filleted into 4 fillets, pinboned)
	20 diamond shell clams
	6 baby zucchini, thinly sliced
	1 handful Italian parsley, sliced
	juice of ½ lemon
	2 zucchini flowers (optional)

1.	For the fermented chilli, put the chillies into a blender with the tomatoes and salt.
2.	Blend into a coarse purée, then put into a sterilised jar.
3.	Cover the jar with a clean tea towel, put in a warm area (28 degrees) and leave to ferment for 4 days.
4.	At the end of the 4 days reblitz the chilli mixture then pass it through a sieve.
5.	In a small pot, melt half of the butter over a medium heat.
6.	Turn the heat down, add the shallots and cook for 2 minutes. Once the shallots have softened, add the fermented chilli mix and bring to a simmer.
7.	Continue cooking for 10 minutes.
8.	Put a non-stick frying pan on a medium heat. Season the fish with sea salt and place skin side down in the pan.
9.	Cook until the fish is about three-quarters cooked through, then add the remaining butter.
10.	Turn the fish over for half a minute, then take out of the pan to rest.
11.	While the fish is cooking, add the clams, zucchini and parsley to the chilli mix and cook until the clams open.
12.	Season with the lemon juice.
13.	To serve, place the clams, zucchini and chilli on a plate or in a bowl and place the fish on top. Garnish with the zucchini flowers, if using.