Kokoda with sweet potato and cassava chips

Like many countries around the world, Fiji has its own version of ceviche or ‘cooking’ fish in an acid such as citrus juice or vinegar. For this Kokoda recipe, I’ve used ocean trout as it’s not only delicious, it’s sustainable.

• serves

  6

• prep

  20 minutes

• cook

  20 minutes

• difficulty

  Mid

Ingredients

• 1 ocean trout fillet (about 1 kg), skinned and pin-boned
• juice of 2 large limes
• 1 small red onion, finely chopped
• 4 small green chillies, halved, seeded and finely chopped
• 3 heirloom vine-ripened tomatoes, peeled and chopped
• 250 ml (1 cup) coconut cream
• 1 tsp cracked black pepper
• salt
• ½ bunch coriander, sprigs picked

Sweet potato and cassava chips

• 2 sweet potatoes
• 2 cassava
• 500 ml (2 cups) vegetable oil, for deep-frying
• sea salt, to taste

Standing time 30 minutes

Instructions

Cut the fish into 1 cm pieces and place in a bowl with the lime juice. Toss to coat and stand for 30 minutes or until the fish turns opaque.

Meanwhile, to make the sweet potato and cassava chips, peel the vegetables, then use a mandolin to cut them into 2 mm-thick slices. Heat the oil in a wok or small saucepan until 175°C and fry the sliced vegetables, in small batches until golden and crisp. Make sure you don’t cook too many chips at one time or the starch in the vegetables will fuse and you’ll get soggy uncooked chips. Remove with a slotted spoon, drain on paper towel and season immediately with salt.

Drain the fish and place in a bowl, then discard the marinade. Add the onion, chilli and tomato and combine well. Add the coconut cream, salt and pepper and combine well. Divide among serving plates, scatter with the coriander and serve immediately with the sweet potato and cassava chips. 

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Cook's Notes

Oven temperatures are for conventional; if using fan-forced (convection), reduce the temperature by 20˚C. | We use Australian tablespoons and cups: 1 teaspoon equals 5 ml; 1 tablespoon equals 20 ml; 1 cup equals 250 ml. | All herbs are fresh (unless specified) and cups are lightly packed. | All vegetables are medium size and peeled, unless specified. | All eggs are 55-60 g, unless specified.