Recipe of the week by Lawrence Murphy | Thai-style lemon sole

Most green beans that we consume in this country come air freighted from Kenya and even with the quickest pickers, packers and planes, will not be as fresh tasting as a locally grown bobby bean.
Thai-style lemon sole with bobby beansThai-style lemon sole with bobby beans
Thai-style lemon sole with bobby beans

Bobby beans are thicker than a French bean and packed with goodness. Plunge the beans into boiling salted water for 3 minutes, then drop them into iced water to stop them cooking. You can eat them raw in salads, reheat them in a pan with butter or stir fry them in a hot smoking wok.

I’ve added them to this Thai style broth with steamed lemon sole for a bit of crunch and texture.

Ingredients (serves 4)

2 lemon soles filleted and skinned

1 onion chopped

small knob ginger or galangal chopped

2 red birds eye chilli chopped

4 cloves garlic finely chopped

table spoon fish sauce

table spoon Mirin

2 tablespoons soy sauce

400ml coconut milk

juice from a lime

bulb fennel sliced

200g bobby beans picked and blanched

bunch spring onion sliced

Method

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1. Heat some vegetable oil in a large saucepan on medium heat.

2. Cook onion for 2 minutes. Add ginger, chilli and garlic, continue to cook for another 2 minutes.

3. Add sliced fennel, mirin, soy and fish sauce and stir in the coconut milk.

4. Bring to a simmer and cook for 4 minutes before adding lime juice.

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5. Stir in bobby beans and carefully lay fish on top of the broth. Sprinkle spring onions and cover with a lid. Cook for about 4 minutes until the fish is steamed.

6. Serve with steamed rice.

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