Blackened Monkfish with Hoppin’ John and Cucumber Salad : Antony Worrall Thompson,Charita Jones Recipe

This is the traditional way to blacken fish in a heavy cast-iron skillet. Momma Cherri uses her own Cajun Seasoning Blend, you can buy it ready made but home made is always best and that way you can modify the mix to suit your taste. A Cajun mix is basically salt with a variety of other spices, so be careful not to add too much salt to this dish.

1 1/2 cups unsalted butter, melted
6 firm Monkfish fillets (about 1/2" to 3/4" thick)
3 tablespoons Cajun Seasoning

For Momma’s Cajun Seasoning

10g ground cayenne pepper or chilli powder
10g ground black pepper
10g ground garlic powder
10g ground coriander
10g ground cumin
7g dried chilli flakes
7g white sugar
60g dried onion flakes
25g dried mixed herbs
7g grated nutmeg
50g salt

For the Hoppin’ John

150g dried black-eyed peas or a 400g can of black eyed peas, drained
40ml vegetable oil
1 onion, chopped
450g easy-cook American-style rice
1- 2 tsp Momma’s Cajun Seasoning
1 teaspoon ground turmeric
1 litre water

For the Cucumber Salad:

2 cucumbers, peeled and thinly sliced
1 onion, peeled and thinly sliced
125ml cider vinegar
200g caster sugar

For the Cajun Seasoning:

Put the ground spices and all the other ingredients except the salt into a food processor or spice grinder and blend to a fine consistency. Be careful not to breathe it in, as it will get you sneezing! Mix the blended seasoning with the salt and store in a jar. It should keep for at least a month – or you can store it in the freezer if you want to keep it for longer.

For the cucumber salad:

Put the sliced cucumber and onion in a bowl, sprinkle the sugar over them and pour over the vinegar. Toss together until well coated, then leave to marinate for at least 1 hour – the longer the better. The cucumber will begin to release its natural juices.

For the Hoppin’ John:

If you are using dried black-eyed peas, put them in a large pan with enough water to cover generously and bring to the boil with a little salt. Simmer for 40-50 minutes until tender but not mushy then drain well.
Heat the oil in a large pan, add the onion and black-eyed peas and fry until the onion is soft and translucent. Add the rice, Cajun Seasoning and turmeric and stir for about a minute, until the rice is coated with the seasoning and appears translucent. Add the water to the pan and bring to the boil. Reduce the heat a little and cook, uncovered, for about 15 minutes. Try not to disturb the mixture too much. Once the water has all been absorbed and the rice is tender, the dish is ready. Gently fork through the rice, making sure all the black-eyed peas are evenly distributed. Put to the side until ready to serve.

For the fish:

Preheat your heavy cast-iron skillet or griddle pan, get it good and hot.
Reserve 12 tablespoons of melted butter for serving and pour the rest into a shallow dish. Dip each fillet into the butter and sprinkle the Cajun Seasoning on both sides.
Place in your pan and cook for about 2 minutes or until the bottom is almost black but not burned. Flip over. Pour about a teaspoon of butter onto the cooked side and continue cooking for another 2 minutes or until the fillet is finished. (Note: It's best to cook about 2 fillets at a time. Wipe clean the skillet between each batch of fillets and keep the temperature hot.)
Serve immediately with 2 tablespoons of butter for dipping, the Hoppin’ John and the cucumber salad.

Serves 6