7NEWS Chef Series: Steamed baby group and pain perdu

No matter what you eat for Christmas, preparing a meal for many can be a minefield.

This holiday season, 7NEWS Brisbane brings you our Chef Series, with the best budget recipes easy to prepare at home.

Steamed baby grouper

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(Gluten free, dairy free)

Ingredients

Steamed fish

• 1 grouper 200g fillet
• 2 tbsp olive oil
• Salt

Citrus tapenade reduction

• 1 Litre Fish stock*
• *2 Litres fish stock (frames, onion, garlic, ginger, cook for 20 mins, strained and reduced by half)
• 2 oranges
• Orange zest
• Grated ginger
• Olive paste – blended Kalamata olives
• Olive oil
• Tamari soy
• Dark sesame oil
• Salt and pepper
• 4 tbsp TBDs chili oil

Three Blue Ducks Chilli oil

• Lt grapeseed oil
• 3 tbsp dark sesame oil
• 2 tbsp roasted Sichuan peppercorns (ground)
• 12 large red chillies
• 12 garlic cloves
• 1 tbsp chili flakes
• 2 tsp star anise
• 1 tbsp paprika
• 5g salt

Instructions

Chilli oil

• Heat to 110deg. Remove from heat and pour over the spices.
• Blend garlic and chili with a little oil and salt. Cook for 5 mins until aromatic, pour in the rest of the oil, and

Salad garnish

• 2 green shallots(thinly sliced)
• 25g coriander( picked)
• 1 tsp roasted white sesame seeds
• Squeeze of lime
• Salt

Whole dish instructions

• Make a fish stock with the bones, ginger, onion and garlic.
• Reduce and season with olive paste, soy, garlic, ginger, sesame oil and orange.
• Steam the fish until just cooked (around 10 mins)
• Put on a plate, spoon over 4 tbsp of the citrus tapenade sauce, and 3 tbsp of the chili oil.
• Top with salad garnish.

Pain Perdu

Ingredients

• 15-20 old or stale croissants and/or danishes
• 195g egg yolk
• 125g castor suger
• 60g Belgian white chocolate
• 900g thickened cream
• 50g cognac
• 100g raisans
• 1 bourbon vanilla bean
• 50g slivered almonds

Instructions

• Pour cognac in a saucepan and burn off for approximately 30 seconds.
• Add thickened cream. Split vanilla bean in half (scraping out seeds first) and add.
• Bring to approximately 80 degrees simmer and stir in white chocolate.
• Pour over premixed egg yolk while stirring constantly with a whisk.
• Set aside
• Cut croissants and danishes and place in a pre-buttered cast iron pot.
• Pour over egg mixture and top with raisins and almosts.
• Bake in pre-heated oven at 160 degrees for approximately 30-45 minutes