Ingredients:

• 1 (1.5kg) Yellow Eyed Mullet
• 1 ¼ cup Breadcrumbs
• 2tbsp Onion, finely chopped
• 1 Carrot, finely diced
• 1 Lemon juice
• 2tbsp fresh fennel
• 2tbsp Italian parsley
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 1 Egg, beaten
• 1 Cos Lettuce
• 1 Spring Onion
• 1lt Seafood stock liquid
• 1tbsp Crème Fraiche
• Poaching dish with lid
• Wire Rack

Clean, de-scale and open the belly down to the tail to make a pocket for the stuffing.

Combine the breadcrumbs, fresh herbs, onion, lemon juice, salt and pepper and bind with beaten egg to make a firm moist stuffing. Place stuffing inside the belly.

Pour the seafood stock into the poaching dish with the wire rack and bring to the boil.

Blanch the green outer leaves from the lettuce and the spring onions in the stock for 20 sec. Refresh under cold water, drain.

Wrap the mullet with the blanched lettuce leaves and hold this together by tying the spring onions around the whole fish. Place into the poaching dish place on lid and steam for 20 minutes.

Season with salt and pepper

Carefully lift out the mullet and put on a heated serving dish.

Reduce the cooking juices and swirl in the creme fraiche

Pour over the sauce and serve with a salad.

The secret to successful mullet cookery is to not overcook. Whichever of the following cooking methods you choose, your mullet will be cooked when its flesh becomes opaque, but is still moist and can easily be pierced with a fork.