I
t wouldbehardtofinda restaurantwith
bettercoastalviewsthanCaptainMoonlite.
It’sperchedabovethebeachintheAnglesea
SurfLifesavingClubonVictoria’sSurf
Coast,soit’snotsurprisingthemenuis heavily
influencedbythesea.So,too,aretherecipes
MattGermanchis,chefandco-ownerofCaptain
MoonlitewithhispartnerGemmaGange,has
createdforthismonth’sissue.
“I wantedtoreflectwhatsummeris about
forme,”hesays.“TheserecipesreflecthowI like
toeatat homeandthatmeanschilledprawns,
barbecue-spicedsardinesandsteamedsnapper- dishesusingseafoodthat’sbothdelicious
andsustainable.”
Germanchisis a believerinusinglocalfish
soit doesn’thavetotraveltoofarandreaches
thetableinitsprime.
“It’sprettyeasytogetyourhandsonlocal
fishthesedays,”hesays.“Youjusthavetoeducate
yourselfa bit,aska fewquestions.It’salwaysa
goodideatodevelopa relationshipwithyour
fishmonger.Gettoknowthemandthey’lltell
youwhenthebestfishis dueinandwhenit’s
inpeakcondition.”
Alltheseafoodintheserecipeshasbeen
chosenbecauseit’sat itsbestinsummer.
“Theflavourandtextureoffishchanges
withtheseasons,”saysGermanchis.“Andthat’s
whyI’vegonefortherockflathead.It’smy
favouritefishandthekingofflatheadsas far
as I’mconcerned.Thefishfeedsoncrustaceans
andsohasbeautifulmeatyfleshthatholds
upwelltoflavoursomesauces.”
Fortheflatheadrecipe,Germanchiswraps
thefishinbullkelphesourcesfromnearby
beaches.Thekelpactslikea saltcrustbutwith
anaddedlayerofoceanicflavour.If youdon’t
havea beachnearbythathassparebullkelp
lyingaround,kombu– availablefromAsian
grocerystores– makesa greatsubstitute.
Germanchisgivesa bigraptosardines,too.
“EverytavernainGreeceservessardines,
simplygrilledandservedwitha squeezeof
lemonorperhapswithaïoli,”hesays.“I love
theflavourandthesimplicityofthesardine,
andhowbutterflyingthemis soeasy– you
don’tevenneeda knife.Youcandothe
deboningwithyourfingers.
“Youwantthingstobesimpleanddelicious
insummer;nottoomuchfuss– andthat’s
whattheserecipesareallabout.”
CaptainMoonlite, 100 GreatOceanRd,Anglesea,
Vic, (03) 5263 2454, captainmoonlite.com.au
“Youwantthings tobesimpleand
deliciousinsummer– andthat’s
what these recipes are all about.”