Grilled Plaice with Sea Spinach Pasta Recipe

Ingredients

1 red onion
1 garlic clove
Sea salt
1 tbsp + 2 tsp olive oil
200g gnocchetti or penne pasta
2 tomatoes
A handful of mint, leaves only
100g wild sea spinach
2 plaice fillets
Freshly ground pepper
50g rocket
1 lemon

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Method

1. Fill a large pan with water and add a generous pinch of salt. Pop the pan on the hob and bring to the boil. Warm your grill to high.

2. Meanwhile, peel and thinly slice the red onion. Peel the garlic clove and finely slice it. Pour 1 tbsp oil into a large frying pan and warm to a medium heat. Slide in the sliced onions and garlic. Fry for 4-5 mins, till a little softened.

3. While the veg fry, check the pan of water. It should be boiling by now, so add the gnocchetti pasta. Simmer for 8 mins, till tender with a slight bite.

4. While the pasta cooks, dice the tomatoes. Pick the mint leaves. Trim any woody ends away from the sea spinach, then roughly shred the leaves. Stir the tomatoes into the onion and cook for a further 3-4 mins, stirring, till pulpy.

5. Pop the plaice onto a baking tray, skin-side up, and rub each fillet with 1 tsp oil and a pinch of salt and pepper. Slide the fish under the grill for 5 mins, till cooked through and golden. The fish will flake easily when pressed with a fork.

6. When the pasta is cooked, drain it, reserving a bowlful of the pasta water. Add the pasta to the frying pan. Pour in 3 tbsp of the reserved cooking water. Add the sea spinach, mint leaves and half of the rocket. Halve the lemon and squeeze in the juice from 1 half. Toss to combine, so the sauce thickens and clings to the pasta, and the spinach leaves are slightly wilted.

7. Divide the pasta between a couple of warm plates, top with the remaining rocket and a plaice fillet each, and serve with wedges of the remaining lemon half on the side.