Annandale local Belinda Guymer is one of the founders behind sustainable seafood cafe, Fish & Co. Fish & Co have recently won ‘Best Fish & Handcut Chips’ in Sydney at the 2016 Foodservice awards.
What was the thing that pushed you to open Fish & Co in Annandale?
We were living in Annandale at the time and had just sold our business in Bronte so we were looking for a local food venue to open a seafood cafe and create awareness about sustainable seafood.
For those buying seafood to eat at home, what are the top seafoods you can rely on being from sustainable supplies?
Blue Kinkawooka mussels from Port Lincoln, South Australia, Giant Skull Island Tiger prawns from the Gulf of Carpentaria and New Zealand Hoki from a MSC- certified fishery.
What is the most sustainable way that a fish can be caught?
Line caught.
What is the secret to the perfect chip?
The secret is to triple fry hand cut chips made from a good quality Sebago potato.
What do you like to cook at home?
My husband is Iranian and his mother taught me to cook a few classic Persian dishes so these are staples in our house.
Do you enjoy fishing?
I used to fish with my grandfather at the Blowering Dam, near Tumut, when I was a kid. I have wonderful memories of chatting with him whilst we anticipated the next tug of the line. Nowadays, most of our outdoor recreational activities involve doing something with our adored dog, Iggy.
How can you get kids to enjoy eating fish?
Many mums have commented to us that their kids only eat fish if they visit Fish & Co, so bring them in! Otherwise, best options are to crumb a mild fish or turn it into fishcakes.
If you could have the experience of swimming with one sea creature, which would it be?
I have swum with turtles at the Great Barrier Reef and it was amazing so I would love to do it again.
Fish & Co are reopening their cafe at the Tramsheds at Harold Park, 1 Dalgal Way, Forest Lodge on September 22nd.
HANOI PRAWN CAKES
Ingredients
• 250g prawns, cut into 1 cm pieces
• 150g of sweet potato, peeled and julienned
• 3 spring onions sliced
• Ground black pepper
• 120g plain flour sifted
• 80g rice flour
• 220ml
• ½ tsp baking powder
• ½ tsp salt
• 1 tsp sugar
• Vegetable oil for frying
Method
Combine rice and plain flour with salt, baking powder, sugar and black pepper. Mix in the water until you have a smooth batter. Rest for 10 minutes. Mix in spring onions, sweet potato and prawns. In a heavy bottomed pan heat a good amount of oil. Place two heaped tablespoons of the mixture onto a spatula and pat into an irregular shape about 1cm thick and push the mixture in the oil. Cook cakes in batches of about 3-4. Turn them once until brown on all sides. Drain on kitchen paper. To eat, wrap the prawn cake in a combination of fresh herbs and make a parcel with a piece of lettuce.
Nuac Cham Dipping sauce: mix 100ml warm water, 4 tbsp fish sauce, 1 tbsp sugar, juice of 2 limes, 1 clove garlic and 3 finely chopped bird’s eye chillis.
