Grilled monkfish cheeks with garlic pasta
Recipe for delicious grilled monkfish cheeks with pasta aglio e olio and rocket
Servings 4 people
Calories 833kcal
Ingredients
Grilled monkfish cheeks
- 8-12 monkfish cheeks
- 2 lemons, halved
- Olive oil
- Salt and pepper
Pasta aglio e olio with rocket
- 500 g pasta
- 100 ml good olive oil
- 5-6 cloves garlic, grated or crushed
- 1 handful parsley, finely chopped
- 2 handfuls rocket
- 50 g Parmesan, finely grated
- 100 ml pasta cooking water
- Salt and pepper
- Chilli flakes (optional)
To serve
- Grated Parmesan, for the top
- Finely chopped parsley
Instructions
Grilled monkfish cheeks
- Clean the cheeks and remove the membranes. *You can easily pull the membranes off the cheeks by hand. If you buy frozen monkfish cheeks, it is easiest to do this when the cheeks are half thawed, - then they come away easily.*Remember to remove the white sinew too, - it pulls out of the monkfish cheeks easily.
- Toss the monkfish cheeks in oil and season them with salt and pepper.*This is a good time to start on the pasta, so it cooks while the cheeks are on the barbecue.
- Grill the monkfish cheeks over high heat, - the barbecue must be searingly hot (at least 250°C), and give them about 3 minutes on each side. Keep the lid open.Grill the lemons too, cut side down.
Pasta aglio e olio with rocket
- Bring a large pan of well-salted water to the boil and cook the pasta for one minute less than the packet says.
- Meanwhile, heat the oil in a frying pan over medium heat, add the garlic and half the parsley and let it sizzle gently in the oil while the pasta cooks.*Stir regularly and make sure it doesn't get too hot, – the oil should only just bubble gently so the garlic turns pale golden and flavours the oil. At home my hob is set to 5 out of 9.
- Lift the pasta straight from the pan of water (don't drain it) into the frying pan and toss it thoroughly with the oil.
- Add the Parmesan, the rest of the parsley and the pasta water, and let it simmer for another minute or so, – tossing constantly.
- Finally, stir in the rocket and season to taste with salt and pepper.*Add a pinch of chilli flakes too, if you like.
Grilled monkfish cheeks with garlic pasta
- Serve the pasta with 2-3 monkfish cheeks per person. Toss the monkfish cheeks through the pasta if you like, so they pick up some of the flavourful garlic oil too, - and squeeze over the grilled lemon before serving.
- Top with finely chopped parsley and a little Parmesan, if you like.
Nutrition
Calories: 833kcal | Carbohydrates: 95g | Protein: 39g | Fat: 32g | Saturated Fat: 6g | Polyunsaturated Fat: 4g | Monounsaturated Fat: 20g | Cholesterol: 40mg | Sodium: 235mg | Potassium: 838mg | Fiber: 4g | Sugar: 4g | Vitamin A: 469IU | Vitamin C: 4mg | Calcium: 205mg | Iron: 2mg