Whole snapper with Vinnies' grape and fennel beurre blanc

A beurre blanc is a delicious butter sauce originating from France. We use it with seafood at Vinnies. It goes superbly with all types of fish, in fact any seafood, and it’s a sauce I think everyone should have in their repertoire because it’s so tasty and so versatile. Cooking a whole snapper on the barbecue is very much part of our Kiwi summer cooking style. A whole fish will always have more flavour and be more moist.

Ingredients

50 ml	Extra virgin olive oil
4	Whole snapper, small, (1 per person) (Main)
4	Fennel bulbs, small
3 sprigs	Fresh thyme
2 Tbsp	Flat leaf (Italian) parsley, finely sliced
2	Shallots, finely sliced
1	Lemon, sliced into 8 wedeges

Vinnies' grape and fennel beurre blanc

1	Shallot, finely sliced
2 tsp	Olive oil
¼ cup	White wine
1 Tbsp	Cream
200 g	Butter, salted, diced
2 tsp	Lemon juice
1 to taste	Sea salt flakes
1 to taste	White pepper, Freshly ground
½ cup	Grapes, green, seedless. Sliced
4	Fennel bulbs, from list above, sliced
1 Tbsp	Parsley, sliced

Directions

1. Heat barbecue until hot. Use a sharp knife to score both sides of the fish three times along the backbone, all the way to the bone.
2. Take a long piece of aluminium foil and place a sheet of baking paper on top. This double layer of wrapping protects the fish; it's like baking it in its own little oven ensuring all the flavours and juices are concentrated and remain intact.
3. Drizzle a little oil on the paper and sprinkle with salt and pepper, lay the fish on top and sprinkle salt in the cavity of the fish. Slice the tips off the fennel bulbs and place these in the cavity along with thyme, parsley, shallots and lemon. Drizzle with oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper.
4. Fold the paper over the fish and seal the edges down by folding them over, then repeat this process with the foil.
5. Depending on the thickness of your fish — a small snapper cooked on an open barbecue should take 10 minutes on each side. Cook for 15 minutes on each side - on a covered barbecue allow 10 minutes on each side. Larger snapper will require longer cooking. Allow to rest for 5 minutes before serving.

Vinnies’ grape and fennel beurre blanc

1. In a small pot, gently fry the shallots with the olive oil without letting them colour, for 5 minutes.
2. Add the wine and boil until reduced down to 1 Tbsp of liquid, then add the cream and bring to the boil.
3. Remove from the heat, then whisk in three pieces of butter until they have melted and start to form the butter sauce; add three more pieces of butter, whisking continuously.
4. Place the pot back on a low heat and gradually whisk in all the butter. Remove from the heat, add lemon juice and season with salt and pepper. Add in the grapes, fennel and parsley and serve spooned over the fish.