To make the salad, rinse the lentils, then place in a saucepan with 4 times the amount of cold water. Bring to the boil, then reduce the heat to low and simmer for 20 minutes or until tender. Drain well and spread out on a tray so they don’t continue to cook. Place in a bowl and drizzle with a little of the olive oil. About 10 minutes before serving, using a mandolin, thinly slice the fennel into a bowl. Toss through the remaining olive oil and the lemon juice and stand for 10 minutes. Just before serving, add the celery, cucumber, parsley, pomegranate seeds and lentils and toss to combine well. Season to taste.
Heat 2 large frying pans over high heat so you don’t overcrowd the pan and ‘poach’ the fish rather than pan-fry it (see Note). Season the fish, add a drizzle of olive oil to both pans and, when hot, add 2 fillets to each pan. Cook for 2 minutes on each side, then divide the butter, lemon zest, lemon juice and parsley between the pans. Shake to gently combine, then serve immediately with the salad.
Note
• If you don’t have 2 large frying pans that can fit comfortably on your stove top, preheat the oven to 150˚C (fan-forced) and keep half the cooked fish warm (covered loosely with foil) while you cook the remaining fillets, but be careful not to overcook it.
• Whiting is a very good source of omega-3 fatty acids and protein, it also provides selenium, and vitamins B3, B6 and B12.
Recipe from Maggie’s Recipe for Life by Maggie Beer with Professor Ralph Martins (Simon & Schuster Australia, pb, $39.99). Photography © Dragan Radocaj. Read our chat with Maggie about eating for better brain health here.
