Lock in moisture and taste by wrapping, coating and folding extra flavour around chicken and fish – with something sweet at the end to tie it all up. 

Baked coconut fish tacos 

Serves 4 

Ground oats make for a healthier crumbed coating, and adding extra coconut boosts flavour and fibre. 

Ingredients 

1 cup rolled oats
1/2 cup desiccated coconut
1kg fresh hake fillets
Salt and milled black pepper
2 eggs, whisked
4 multi-seed or white flour tortillas
1 avocado, mashed
1 lemon, juiced
1 jalapeño, sliced
1/4 red cabbage, shredded 
Fresh coriander, for serving  

Method 

1. Blitz oats in a blender to create a coarse flour. 
2. Combine oat flour and coconut in a large bowl.
3. Pat dry hake with kitchen towel, slice into 5cm strips and season well. 
4. Preheat oven to 200°C. 
5. Add egg to a bowl and dip fish strips into egg, then coat in oat flour mixture and set aside. (Repeat process for a thicker crumb). 
6. Place fish strips onto a lined baking tray and bake for 18-20 minutes or until golden. 
7. To make the taco shells, switch off oven and hang the tortillas over wire racks in the oven for 2-3 minutes.
8. Combine avocado and lemon and season well.
9. Fill tacos with avo mixture, jalapeño, red cabbage and fresh coriander. Serve immediately.

Salt-crusted baked whole fish 

Serves 4 

The salt crust locks in moisture and helps to cook the fish slowly and evenly for a fall-apart, flaky fish.  

Ingredients 

1 whole white fish, scaled and guts removed (we used locally caught jacopever, but any sustainable fish works well) 
2 limes or lemons, sliced 
1 lemon, sliced 
3 cloves garlic, sliced 
Handful fresh dill  

For the salt crust  

1 cup cake flour, plus extra for dusting 
1/4 cup coarse salt 
1 lemon, zested 
1 egg white 
Handful fresh thyme 
Handful fresh coriander  

To serve  

Fresh rocket 
Lime or lemon wedges 
Crispy baby potatoes   

Method 

1. Stuff the cavity of the fish with lime, lemon, garlic and dill.
2. For the crust, blitz together flour, salt, zest, egg white and herbs to make a stiff dough. Add more flour if the mixture is too wet and sticky.
3. Preheat oven to 200°C.
4. Roll out dough on a lightly floured surface to about 5mm thick.
5. Brush fish lightly with oil and cover fish with dough, making sure to tightly seal edges.
6. Place fish onto a greased baking tray and bake for 25-30 minutes.
7. Allow fish to cool slightly before transferring to a serving platter.
8. Take care to break open crust to reveal fish – remind guests not to eat the salt crust. Scatter with fresh rocket and serve with lime or lemon wedges and crispy baby potatoes.

Air fryer chicken lettuce cups 

Serves 4-6 

No air fryer? No problem! Oven bake at 200°C for 18-20 minutes or until golden. 

Ingredients 

For the pickled onions 

1/2 cup white vinegar
1/4 cup water
2 Tbsp sugar
2 red onions, sliced  

1 packet (about 500g) chicken breast fillets
Salt and milled black pepper
1 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 cup sesame seeds
2 eggs, whisked
1 lemon
1 cup yoghurt
1 clove garlic, grated
1/4 cucumber, grated
2 butter lettuce heads, leaves separated
Fresh coriander, for serving  

Method 

1. Place vinegar, water and sugar into a pot and bring to the boil.
2. Place onions in a bowl and cover with hot pickling liquid. Cover and set aside for 15 minutes.
3. Cut chicken into 5cm strips and season well.
4. Combine breadcrumbs and sesame seeds in one bowl and eggs in another.
5. Dip chicken strips into egg and then into breadcrumbs to coat evenly. (Repeat process for a thicker crumb).
6. Place batches of strips into an air fryer basket and cook for 7-10 minutes at 200°C on the baking setting. Repeat with the remaining chicken strips.
7. Remove, drizzle with lemon juice and set aside to cool.
8. Combine yoghurt, garlic, cucumber and season well.
9. Fill lettuce leaves with chicken strips, top with yoghurt mixture and pickled onions and garnish with fresh coriander.

Bacon-wrapped beer can chicken 

Serves 4 

Wrapping chicken in bacon prevents it from drying out as it roasts 

Ingredients 

1 whole chicken, giblets removed 
Glug canola oil 
Salt and milled black pepper 
1 packet (200g) streaky bacon 
1 can (500ml) milk stout beer 
1/4 cup melted butter 
1 lime or lemon, zested and juiced 
3 Tbsp maple or golden syrup 
1 Tbsp chopped fresh thyme, plus extra for serving  

Method 

1. Preheat oven to 180°C.
2. Rub chicken with oil and season generously.
3. Lie chicken breast-side up and wrap with bacon in a lattice pattern, taking care to cover completely. Secure bacon using toothpicks.
4. Remove 1/4 of beer from can and insert can into cavity of chicken, standing it upright.
5. Combine butter, lime or lemon zest and juice, maple syrup and thyme to create a glaze.
6. Brush chicken with 1/4 of mixture, taking care to coat it evenly.
7. Roast for 1 hour and 10-15 minutes or until cooked through, basting with butter mixture every 15 minutes. (No power? No problem! Cook the chicken over medium coals in a closed weber braai.)
8. Remove toothpicks, scatter with extra thyme and serve while hot. 

Asian fish cabbage parcels 

SERVES 4 

No bamboo steamer? Simply place parcels in a colander over a tight-fitting pot of simmering water. Cover with a lid and steam it up! 

Ingredients 

1 whole cabbage, leaves separated 
500g hake fillets, cut into thick chunks 
1 Tbsp sesame oil 
2 cloves garlic, grated 
1 tsp grated fresh ginger 
2 Tbsp chopped fresh coriander 
Salt and milled black pepper 
2 carrots, peeled and julienned 
1 red onion, julienned 
Sesame seeds, for serving 
Sweet chilli sauce, for serving  

Method 

1. Bring a pot of salted water to the boil. 
2. Blanch cabbage leaves in water for about 15-20 seconds, until soft and pliable. Set aside to cool completely. 
3. Combine hake, sesame oil, garlic, ginger and coriander and toss. Season well. 
4. Spread one cabbage leaf onto a clean work surface. 
5. Fill with hake mixture, carrot and onion then roll up cabbage leaf to enclose filling completely. Repeat this process with the remaining ingredients. 
6. Fill a bamboo steamer with cabbage parcels and place over a pot of simmering water. 
7. Cover and steam for about 7-10 minutes. 
8. Sprinkle with sesame seeds and serve hot with sweet chilli sauce on the side.

 

Leek, potato and Cheddar pastry ring 

SERVES 4 

No bamboo steamer? Simply place parcels in a colander over a tight-fitting pot of simmering water. Cover with a lid and steam it up! 

Ingredients 

1 Tbsp butter 
Glug oil 
2 cloves garlic, sliced 
1 tsp mustard seeds 
1 bay leaf 
1 packet (300g) leeks, thinly sliced 
6 potatoes, peeled and diced 
Salt and milled black pepper 
1 roll puff pastry, defrosted 
1 egg yolk, whisked 
1 1/2 cups grated mature Cheddar 
Fresh herbs of your choice, for serving   

Method 

1. Melt butter in a pan, add oil and fry garlic for 30 seconds. 
2. Add mustard seeds and bay leaf then cook for another minute. 
3. Stir through leeks and potatoes, season, cover and cook for about 10-15 minutes or until tender. Stir occasionally to prevent mixture from sticking.
4. Tip mixture onto a plate and chill in the fridge for 15 minutes. 
5. Preheat oven to 180°C. 
6. Roll pastry out onto a lightly floured surface to make a rectangle of about 50cm in length. Brush edges with egg yolk. 
7. Mix cheese through cooled vegetables and spoon along the length of one half of the pastry. 
8. Fold over pastry to cover filling and crimp edges to seal. 
9. Shape log into a ring and seal two ends together. Place onto a greased and lined baking tray. 
10. Brush pastry ring with remaining egg yolk and score the top. (This allows steam to escape while cooking). 
11. Bake for 25-30 minutes or until golden and cooked through. 
12. Garnish with fresh herbs and serve with a dipping sauce of your choice.

3-ingredient chocolate covered strawberry yoghurt popsicles 

SERVES 6-8 

Feel free to swap out the white chocolate for dark or milk chocolate. We know everyone has their favourite! 

Ingredients 

4 tubs (175g each) double cream strawberries and cream yoghurt 
1 packet (200g) frozen mixed berries 
4 slabs (80g each) white chocolate 

Method 

1. Blitz together yoghurt and raspberries until smooth.  
2. Divide mixture between 6-8 lolly moulds and freeze for 2-4 hours until half frozen.  
3. Pop in lolly sticks and freeze for a further 6 hours or until solid.  
4. Melt chocolate over a double boiler, cool slightly and pour into a tall glass or jug. 
5. Dip each popsicle into chocolate until it is submerged and then carefully remove. 
6. Allow excess chocolate to drip off. Turn popsicle upright and hold for 30-60 seconds to allow chocolate to set.  
7. Return to freezer and repeat process with remaining popsicles.

Words: Chad January

Photography: Fresh Living Magazine

Also read: Pastry-wrapped camembert with grilled plums