Dazz Switalla Flavour Secrets No.1 The Strand Chef www.no1thestrand.co.nz

There seems to be a lot of white butterfly around at the moment. They are a perennial gardener's curse, and seem to flap from plant to plant laying eggs for caterpillars to hatch from and munch on everything you grow.

One family of plants that seem to attract a lot of attention is brassica, including broccoli, kale, cabbage; and some of the brassica chinensis, like pak choy and tatsoi that has the darker leaves.

As I strive to grow microgreens as organically as possible, sprays and chemicals are out and net curtains are in. These outdated window decorations make ideal covers to try and stop the pesky butterfly getting to my microgreens.

The great thing is microgreens are easier to cover than full-grown crops; and with pak choy and tatsoi they taste sweeter younger, so eating them as microgreens is ideal.
There are many Chinese-type cabbages and ways to have them. My typical protein choice for cabbage is beef or pork. But this week I'm trying one of my favourite fish, gurnard, served with an Asian-style tatsoi and noodle broth.

Gurnard with tatsoi in Asian broth

Ingredients
3 gurnard fillets, cut into strips.
200g hokkien noodles
200-30g meaty fish frames
1 lemongrass stalk, chopped
1 kaffir lime leaf, shredded
2 cloves garlic
250g small tatsoi
1 small handful Thai basil
1 mild green chilli, sliced
1 red onion
1 red pepper,
4 Tbsp lime juice
Salt and pepper
3L water
2 Tbsp dark soya sauce
2 Tbsp fish sauce

Method

In a large stainless pot, saute off the red onion, lemongrass, chilli, garlic and lime leaf.
Add the fish frames and half of the Thai basil. Add the water and bring up to a simmer for 15 minutes.

Strain through a sieve into another pot, adding the soya sauce, fish sauce and lime juice. Add the hokkien noodles and bring up to
the boil.

Meanwhile, season the gurnard fillets and seal off on a hot pan with some oil and the sliced capsicum. Quickly add in the tatsoi and stir-fry with the gurnard for 1-2 minutes. Spoon in a little of the fish stock, and turn off the heat. Cover to finish cooking through for another two minutes.

Serve the gurnard on top of a pile of noodles, add a garnish of Thai basil, tatsoi microgreens, and a ladle or two of the fish stock.